Canada to transfer seized Russian An-124 aircraft to Ukraine

After being stuck at Toronto Pearson Airport for over a year, an Antonov An-124 aircraft — owned by Russian cargo firm Volga-Dnepr — is to be confiscated and transferred to Ukraine as part of a new package of sanctions against Russia from Canada, which target Volga-Dnepr in particular. Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal shared the news in a Facebook update on April 16, following meetings with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland. The An-124 has been parked at Pearson airport and unable to leave since it arrived in Canada on Feb. 27, 2022, from Khabarovsk, Russia, via Anchorage, Alaska, to deliver a shipment of Covid-19 rapid tests. The same day the plane arrived, Canada’s Transport Minister, Omar Alghabra, closed Canadian airspace to Russian-owned, chartered, or operated aircraft. This was in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. The war is ongoing. Several countries have since imposed sanctions against Russia, with many targeting the country’s aviation sector. In addition to Russian-registered aircraft being unable to use Canadian, U.S., and European airspace, the sanctions have resulted in lease cancelations and major airframe OEMs halting the supply of parts and support for Russian airlines. Currently, four An-124s belonging to Volga-Dnepr — which owns Volga-Dnepr Airlines — are stuck in other countries, including the aircraft grounded in Canada. <br/>