Aeroflot says privatisation will not fly

Aeroflot’s CE has warned against privatising the airline, as it seeks to maintain vital domestic services while competing with the likes of Lufthansa. “I believe that for a country like Russia, it is dangerous not to have a state-run airline,” Vitaly Saveliev said. He argued that, with the country’s economy in recession, the govt needed Aeroflot to ensure affordable transport across its far-flung territories and limit the fallout from rival Transaero’s bankruptcy. Saveliev said he expected Aeroflot to return to profit this year but cautioned that Russia would struggle with economic stagnation and a sluggish aviation market for a long time. His remarks come as Arkady Rotenberg, an oligarch and childhood friend of president Vladimir Putin, eyes a deal to buy half the state’s controlling stake in Aeroflot. <br/>