Russia's Industry and Trade Ministry supports revising tax, customs tariff policies on importing foreign aircraft

MOSCOW. April 1 (Interfax) - The Russian government should review the tax and customs tariff policies regarding the import of foreign aircraft in order to protect the domestic aviation industry, Deputy Industry and Trade Minister Gennady Abramenkov said.

"The matter is considerably broader than the Industry and Trade Ministry's expertise, as this also applies to legislators. If we plan to continue to open the market the same as it was open before [...], if we do not change these provisions, we will of course not have an aviation industry, or it will be in the state it has been in for the last 30 years. We really need to review tax policy here, and customs and imports, duties, policy, including requirements for airlines," Abramenkov said during a meeting of the Federation Council economic policy committee.

Industry and Trade Minister Anton Alikhanov previously voiced similar sentiment. The procedure of temporary import of foreign aircraft that has been in effect in Russia for the last several decades "has seriously damaged the Russian aircraft industry," Alikhanov said. He also said that the Industry and Trade Ministry supports revising the terms and conditions for subsidizing the leasing of Russian aircraft, which, in his opinion, do not allow the aircraft industry to generate a profit.

U.S. Boeing and Europe's Airbus have manufactured the majority of the aircraft that comprise the fleets of Russian airlines, with deliveries to Russia ceasing in 2022 upon Western sanctions being imposed. Russian aviation industry enterprises are preparing aircraft such as the MC-21, SJ-100, Tu-214, and others for serial production in order to replace the foreign equipment.