Aeroflot is ready to part with Aurora Airlines, its easternmost subsidiary, according to an exchange of communications between the group, which owns 51 per cent of Aurora, and the administration of Sakhalin region, which holds the remaining 49 per cent, Rusaviainsider.com informed.
Aurora, which was launched in 2013 with the notion to become the single airline operator for the vast far eastern territories of Russia, has fallen short of its parent’s expectations.
An exchange of letters between Aeroflot Group’s general director Vitaly Savelyev and Valery Limarenko, the governor of the Sakhalin region, suggests that Russia’s largest airline group is looking to spin off its regional subsidiary. “Having reviewed your proposal of selling the shares of Aurora Airlines, I hereby inform you that the administration of Sakhalin region is ready to start negotiations on this matter,” Limarenko wrote on May 13.
Although there is no clear explanation of Aeroflot’s motives in its letters, the decision coincided with a notorious meeting with president Vladimir Putin dedicated to supporting Russia’s airline and aerospace industry through the Coronavirus crisis.
After the meeting on May 13 it was announced that Rostec-owned Red Wings Airlines would purchase up to 76 Russian-made jets within four years. It is likely that Red Wings is now the new candidate to serve as the basis for the ‘united far eastern carrier’ – the role Aurora was created for but failed to achieve.
“The option with Aurora serving as the base for the new airline had indeed been discussed. As far as I know, according to the latest information, Red Wings has been selected for the project. What the reasons behind this decision are, I can’t comment,” an official from the administration of the Sukhalin region, who opted not to be named, explained to Russian Aviation Insider.
“We have responded [to Aeroflot’s proposal] because we are not indifferent to the fate of the airline, which we co-own. The region is interested in gaining control over Aurora. What the terms of the sale would be, or when the negotiations would start – there’s no information. We are now waiting for further comments,” he concluded.
