Private jets belonging to Russian oligarchs that flew to Dubai to seek refuge from sanctions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are stuck there, according to the Wall Street Journal.
This has resulted in a build-up of more than 100 planes sitting idle at Dubai airports since the war began.
Satellite images shot by Earth-imaging company Planet Labs also show an accumulation of private jets from mid-February to the start of April.
When Russia attacked Ukraine, Western nations penalised Russia for its actions by imposing a number of sanctions. The sanctions aimed to destabilise not just the Russian economy, but to penalise some of President Vladimir Putin’s closest allies.
Many Russian oligarchs and billionaires have had some of their most luxurious assets seized. Last month Gibraltar seized a $75 million (R1 billion) super yacht owned by billionaire Dmitry Pumpyansky.
Some of Russia’s richest have found refuge in places that have not imposed sanctions, including Dubai and the Maldives.
In March four private jets were seen leaving Moscow for Dubai, according to flight tracking site Flightradar24.
However, as these jets fly to Dubai to evade sanctions, they become marooned there as Russian jet owners can’t fly them anywhere else, aviation lawyers and private jet brokers told the Wall Street Journal.
‘A lot of the Russian-related airplanes have moved to the UAE because you can fly in the airspace there,’ Steve Varsano, CEO of a London-based sales brokerage firm for private planes, said to the publication. ‘But once you get there you’re pretty much grounded because you can’t maintain the airplanes.’
The US Department of Commerce imposed sanctions that prevent Russian-linked aircraft from being refuelled, maintained or repaired. Major aviation companies, including Boeing and Airbus, also stopped supplying spare parts to Russian airlines as a result of the war.