S7 Airlines is to decommission its A320 fleet in repsonse to challenges in keeping its fleet of A320neo and A321neo aircraft in the air due to Western sanctions on Russia impacting the maintenance of their Pratt & Whitney engines.
Russian civil aviation regulator, Dmitry Yadrov, expressed concerns that the engine issues with the neo narrowbodies operated by S7 could impact Russia’s overall passenger numbers.
S7 Airlines had to trim its winter schedule last year due to the grounded Airbus aircraft, with repairs for the P&W engines not being possible by S7 Technics or Iran.
S7 Airlines has opposed a Kremlin plan to fund airport reconstruction at the expense of airline revenues, with concerns that higher fees could lead to increased ticket prices for passengers.
An S7 spokesperson said “S7 Airlines does not support the proposed initiative. Over the last few years, the burden on airlines in terms of airport costs has already risen significantly – especially where projects to build new terminals have been implemented. At those airports where projects have already been implemented, the cost of servicing a flight has doubled in some cases. Since November 2022, air navigation fees have increased by 76pc. Further growth may lead to a general increase in the cost of air tickets on the market.”
