Despite sanctions in Russia caused by the ongoing war in Ukraine, Aeroflot has had a very strong Summer period, attributed to domestic and some international growth.
Using data from RadarBox.com, we can see a significant spike in movement numbers, which could cause some concern amongst sanction instigators globally.
Without further ado, let’s get into the numbers…
Russia-based Aeroflot Experiencing a Surge Despite Sanctions…
For July 4-11, Aeroflot operated 789 flights, which is an increase of 67.87% compared to the same period last year, where 470 movements were recorded.
Compared to the same period in 2019, Aeroflot is only requiring 29 flights to match that level, which in the context of ongoing sanctions handed to Russia preventing a lot of international flights, highlights its focus on domestic growth and some international market growth too.
Below is the last four weeks’ worth of data that the flight tracking company has recorded:
| Date | 2019 Numbers | 2022 Numbers | 2023 Numbers | Percentage Difference (2023 vs. 2022) |
| June 6-13 | 808 movements | 368 movements | 750 movements | +103.80% |
| June 13-20 | 811 movements | 398 movements | 763 movements | +91.71% |
| June 20-27 | 809 movements | 418 movements | 771 movements | +84.45% |
| June 27-July 4 | 817 movements | 443 movements | 783 movements | +76.75% |
What we can see from the data is that over the Summer period so far, Aeroflot has been making some considerable gains and has been getting very close to 2019 levels.
This will be something that Western governments will be wanting to keep an eye on, as it is showing that sanctions may not be working as effectively as they intended to.
With President Putin of Russia kickstarting growth in aircraft production as well, this could be another indicator that travel demand across the entirety of the country is strong enough to sustain these sanctions moving forward.
