Lessors face legal quagmire as Russian plane repos stall

Global leasing companies staring at an imminent sanctions deadline to repossess more than 400 jets worth almost $10b from Russian airlines have received mostly radio silence as experts warn of legal wrangling that could last a decade. Western bans imposed after Russia's invasion of Ukraine give most leasing firms until March 28 to sever ties with Russian airlines - sparking a game of cat-and-mouse from Asia to Africa as lenders frantically try to seize aircraft. Leasing companies are terminating leases and asking for planes to be returned along with the paperwork that must be secured for planes to be placed with new airlines. But so far, Western observers say that is not happening. "There is nothing official, but Russian airlines are not giving aircraft back. The only ones are a handful that were already outside Russia and could be repossessed," said independent aviation adviser Bertrand Grabowski. Those include two jets seized in Istanbul and Mexico City, according to trade journal ch-aviation. Others have wriggled through the repo net. An Aeroflot Boeing 777 narrowly escaped being seized at the initiative of a non-Russian bank in Southeast Asia and the Gulf in the past week, two people familiar with the matter said. An Airbus A321neo leased to the same flag carrier was the target of a failed repossession in Egypt, aviation publication The Air Current reported. In total there are almost 780 jets leased by Russian airlines, including 515 from abroad. Even some leased within Russia are subject to claims from foreign banks. Some 425 of these are most at risk in what looks set to become aviation's biggest mass default, according to consultants Ascend by Cirium who have seen "virtually no progress" in seizing jets. For a maturing industry with portfolios worth up to $300b, that remains far from the global impact of the pandemic that grounded over 15,000 jets.<br/>