MSGID: 2:292/854 1f351342   
   TZUTC: 0200                     
   Russian airline Aeroflot will dismantle eight Boeing freighters to keep its   
   passenger fleet flying, according to the Ukrainian Foreign Intelligence   
   Service. The aircraft are believed to be from the Volga-Dnepr Group, the   
   parent company of AirBridgeCargo and Atran Airlines.   
       
   These aircraft reportedly include six Boeing 737-800BCFs and two Boeing   
   747-400Fs. They will be transferred to Aeroflot subsidiaries Pobeda and   
   Rossiya Airlines through financial leasing arrangements. The financing will   
   reportedly come from Russia's National Welfare Fund.   
       
   The plan underscores the increasing pressure on the Russian aviation industry,   
   which has been struggling with a shortage of spare parts and has struggled to   
   keep Western aircraft operational since the imposition of international   
   sanctions.   
       
   Before the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the country had an estimated   
   fleet of 1,500 to 1,800 Western-built commercial aircraft. Meanwhile, the need   
   to find creative 'and expensive' solutions to keep those planes in the air is   
   growing.   
      
   --- DB4 - 20230201   
    * Origin: AVIATION ECHO HQ (2:292/854)   
   SEEN-BY: 80/1 105/81 106/201 128/187 129/14 305 153/7715 154/110 221/1   
   SEEN-BY: 226/30 227/114 229/110 317 400 426 428 470 664 700 705 280/464   
   SEEN-BY: 291/111 292/854 2226 8125 301/1 320/219 322/757 335/364 342/200   
   SEEN-BY: 396/45 460/58 633/280 712/848 902/26 5001/100 5075/35   
   PATH: 292/854 229/426