The government of Canada has updated its list of sanctioned Russian entities, adding Volga-Dnepr Group with all of its subsidiaries and aircraft manufacturer UZGA (Russian Federation) (Ekaterinburg).
The sanctioned Volga-Dnepr Group entities include Volga-Dnepr Airlines (which operates Soviet-made freighters: An-124-100s and Il-76TD-90VDs), AirBridgeCargo (which operates Western-made freighters: B747-400ERFs, B747-8Fs, and a single B777-200F), and narrowbody specialist Atran (with a fleet of a single B737-400(SF) and six B737-800(BCF)s).
Due to sanctions previously imposed on Russian airlines by other countries, only Volga-Dnepr Airlines is currently active, while the two carriers operating Western-made freighters are dormant.
The Canadian government also sanctioned Alexey Isaikin, the founder and, until recently, owner of Volga-Dnepr Group. Isaikin sold the company to management in mid-2022 to allow it to avoid sanctions.
Volga-Dnepr Group and its subsidiary airlines are not specially designated by the United States or the European Union, although they fall under the blanket sanctions imposed on the Russian aviation sector that practically ban any deals with Western companies. Isaikin has only been designated by the United Kingdom.
One of Volga-Dnepr Airlines' An-124-100s was seized at Toronto Pearson during the early days of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and remains impounded at the airport. By late 2022, the carrier had incurred over CAD300,000 Canadian dollars (USD223,000) in aircraft parking fees.
In turn, UZGA (the Ural Works of Civil Aviation) has been designated by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control and the European Union. The manufacturer, whose main civilian project is the LMS-901 Baikal, is owned by the national industrial holding Rostec and is heavily involved in military aviation.
