Aeroflot is planning on decreasing its dependency on western-built aircraft. Going ahead, the airline aims for 70% of its fleet to be made up of Russian-built aircraft by 2030 helping the airline to meet its set target of 65 million passengers towards the end of this decade.
Aeroflot aims to carry 43.5 million passengers in 2023, up from 40.7 million last year. By 2030, this figure is expected to reach 65 million passengers, giving the airline a 50% share of the Russian market.
However, with a limited international network and major markets such as the US and EU cut off for services, it will be a daunting task for the airline. Commenting on the airline growth, Sergey Aleksandrovsk, CEO, Aeroflot said: “By 2030, we plan to put into operation 339 domestic aircraft and develop competencies to maintain airworthiness. The ratio of foreign and domestic aircraft in the fleet will be 30 to 70%, respectively.”
The sanctions imposed by the western countries on Russian carriers have put airlines in a tricky situation to obtain spare parts. Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency recently gave approval for parts from grounded planes to be reinstalled on other aircraft.
Despite the crippling effect of sanctions and international travel bans, Russian airlines managed to fly a total of 95 million passengers in 2022. In an attempt to boost passenger numbers, Aeroflot is gradually beginning to expand its international route network to a limited number of destinations where the carrier is permitted to fly.
Aeroflot is set to resume the Kazakhstan route covering three destinations in Kazakhstan. Besides the airline is also ramping up its China capacity with the lifting of restrictions on Chinese borders.