Profil cited Pavel Solovyov, the development director at the aviation group Planet, as saying that half of Russia's 100 richest people now own business jets. In all, the Russian Federation has more than 100 corporate and executive planes.
"Russians who do business all over the world use business jets," Planet chief executive Sergei Morozov explained. He said their foreign partners saw the choice of plane to be very important, as it was a matter of prestige and accepted Western business ethics.
According to Forbes magazine, Chukotka Governor and Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich is Russia's richest man with a fortune of $13.3 billion. Abramovich flies a custom-made Boeing B-767 worth about $100 million. Previously, Abramovich had a BBJ plane, an executive version of the Boeing 737-700 jet (worth about $50 million).
A member of the lower chamber of Russia's parliament and the owner of the Nafta-Moscow oil refinery, Suleiman Kerimov, who is also worth $2.6 billion, prefers a BBJ.
Aluminum tycoon Oleg Deripaska ($5.5 billion) travels in a Gulfstream V plane worth $35 million, whereas Mikhail Fridman, Alfa Group board chairman ($7 billion), has a Bombardier Global Express that is worth about $40 million.
The chief executive of state-owned oil giant Rosneft, Sergei Bogdanchikov, flies in a Cessna Citation X worth about $11.5 million. Banker and member of the upper chamber of parliament Sergei Pugachev owns two aircraft: a Falcon 2000 ($25 million) and a Gulfstream II-B worth $10 million. SUAL Holding board chairman Viktor Vekselberg ($5 billion) travels in a Bombardier Challenger 604, which comes with a $24 million price tag attached.
However, 75% of Russian business jets are affiliated with Western airlines because Russian citizens and their corporations have no right to directly purchase these planes. Not only does a separate company have to be registered for this purpose, but Russia also charges sky-high aircraft import duties, Profil said.
