MOSCOW, August 5 (RIA Novosti) – Trading of Russia’s largest air carrier Aeroflot’s stock is currently making a nosedive over discussions of possibly limiting air corridors for foreign air carriers flying over Russian territory, with the price dropping by six percent on the Moscow trading floor on Tuesday.
As of 11:38 local time [07:38 GMT] Aeroflot shares had dropped 5.47 percent to 47.17 rubles (just under $1.32) per share.
Russian daily Vedomosti reported last week that the Russian government may impose limits on transit flights across Russia for European air carriers after the EU imposed new sanctions on Russia. According to the newspaper, the discussion about possible transit limitations for European airlines began soon after the first round of sanctions against Russia was imposed by the European Union. The issue became more high-priority after the suspension of flights by Russia’s Dobrolet airline.
To fly to Asia, European airlines presently pay Aeroflot for the right to use the shortest trans-Siberian route. According to a source close to the company, Aeroflot receives less than $300 million annually from foreign airlines.
A subsidiary of state-owned Aeroflot, Dobrolet, launched its first commercial flights from the Russian capital to Crimea’s Simferopol in June. In July, the company started selling tickets for flights to cities across Russia, including Volgograd, Perm, Samara, Ufa, Yekaterinburg and Kazan.
Dobrolet was included on the EU blacklist unveiled on July 30 among other Russian entities targeted by sanctions over the country’s alleged role in the escalation of the Ukrainian crisis.
The European Union said Dobrolet carried out flights to Crimea, facilitating the former Ukrainian region’s integration with Russia.
