Russian oligarchs bypass EU ban on flights

Private jets of sanctioned Russian oligarchs continue flying through European airspace.

Welt am Sonntag identified at least 30 such flights. According to the outlet, avoiding sanctions is possible because the real ownership of jets is often hidden via offshore companies'

One such example is the Bombardier aircraft registered T7-7AA. The aircraft is registered in San Marino, managed by a Swiss company, and it is reportedly owned by Russian businessman Albert Avdolyan. Still, the jet was able to fly from Nice to Istanbul on March 2.

In mid-March, British authorities pulled a Cessna jet with the registration G-LATO out of service in south London. The Ministry of Transport in London attributes the Cessna to the Russian oil billionaire Yevgeny Markowitsch Schwidler.

Schwidler is considered a friend of Putin's confidant and ex-football club owner Roman Abramovich. Before the confiscation in London, Schwidler's private jet had flown eight more times through the EU, several times through German airspace. His last trip to London also began on March 18 in Hamburg, where nobody stopped the jet from taking off.

A Luxembourg-registered jet, which according to Forbes belongs to the Russian-Ukrainian oligarch Wiktor Wekselberg, was also able to leave Europe in April. The plane took off from Basel, crossed EU airspace and landed in the Kazakh capital, Nur-Sultan.

A helicopter belonging to Russian billionaire Alexander Zanadvorov seems to be flying through France completely undisturbed. At least eight flights of the Airbus helicopter can be proven after the start of the airspace closure.