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"Vityaz-Aero" is defeated
The disruption of the Vityaz-Aero helicopter carrier's operations could lead to disruption of communications between hard-to-reach areas of Kamchatka and could negatively impact the tourism market, Kommersant's sources predict. Some Kommersant sources believe that the company's closure should have occurred after the plane crash in 2021. However, others believe that the claims were not systemic and that the company's closure is explained by the redistribution of regional transport markets.
According to Kommersant's sources in the market, the suspension of Vityaz-Aero's operations risks disrupting air traffic between regions of Kamchatka if the volumes of transportation are not immediately replaced by others. However, the interlocutors have different views on the effectiveness of the replacement and what is happening.
On October 15, the Ministry of Transport announced that Vityaz-Aero's flight and maintenance certificates could not be restored. The Federal Air Transport Administration cancelled the Mi-8 during an inspection after it crashed in late August with 19 passengers and three crew members on board. The certificate, cancelled after the Vityaz-Aero crash in August 2021, has been restored until the winter of 2022. Some of Kommersant's sources defended the suspension of the company's operations back then, while others said the claims were exaggerated and biased (see Kommersant, August 14, 2021).
Several Vityaz-Aero helicopters will be leased to the Kamchatka Aviation Enterprise (KAP, part of Aurora).
It was not possible to immediately contact the former general director of Vityaz-Aero, Viktor Sirotin, and the head of Aurora, Konstantin Sukhorebrik.
The register of operator certificates of the Federal Air Transport Agency for Vityaz-Aero includes 19 Mi-8 helicopters. The owners listed in the report include co-owners of Okeanrybflot Igor Redkin and regional senator Valery Ponomarev. Since 2015, the company has been engaged in subsidized transportation in the region, as well as air transportation and transportation of fishermen. According to Kommersant's sources, Vityaz-Aero accounted for up to 90% of all shift, cargo and tourist helicopter traffic in Kamchatka. Experts estimate the company's share in the passenger segment at 30%, KAP - at 70%.
The conclusions of the IAC report on the 2021 Vityaz-Aero crash attributed the failure of the aircraft commander (PIC) to a “timely decision to fly to an alternate airfield” in adverse weather conditions. Contributing factors included, among other things, the PIC’s lack of sufficient training to operate the equipment, “psychological personality traits” associated with “excessive risk taking,” and the inability to “learn the necessary lessons from similar past incidents.” The investigation into past accidents also found that the airline’s preventive work was insufficient.
SPARK provided data on Rostransnadzor's claims against Vityaz-Aero up to 2021. In particular, the matter concerned cases of work downtime and shortcomings in the practices and training of the rest of the crew. In this regard, some Kommersant sources consider these claims sufficient grounds for suspending flights. However, according to a Kommersant representative, regulators did not pay due attention to the problem, and the company avoided liability thanks to the support of local authorities.
However, other Kommersant sources believe that the violations were not systematic or serious. These "largely bureaucratic" violations are among the frequent complaints of inspectors, on the basis of which "all Russian airlines should be closed." According to a Kommersant representative, Kamchatka is considered one of the most difficult regions in terms of maneuvering due to mountain visibility conditions and the frequent occurrence of so-called skids, which lead to a rapid and unpredictable "cloud accumulation" in any weather. Therefore, in their opinion, the level of aviation accidents during intensive operation here will always be higher than in other regions of the Russian Federation. According to Kommersant sources, Aurora has long advocated the consolidation of subsidized passenger transport and believes that this has become a pretext for "restructuring the market."
The ability of the KAP to cope with the prompt replacement of the Vityaz-Aero helicopter traffic in the region raises doubts among all of Kommersant’s interlocutors.
It says that some of the announced vehicle lease agreements are still legally unexplained and that "wet lease" is not possible without an operator certificate. In addition, KAP will have "a number of problems" with the same pilots, and the difficulties with flight safety in the region are general, Kommersant's sources believe. Recall that KAP's An-26 crashed on Palana Hill in July 2021, killing 28 people, but KAP flights were not suspended.
Sergey Romashkin, vice president of the Russian Association of Travel Agents, believes that the lack of a helicopter program in Kamchatka could cause difficulties for the tourism market. According to him, 30-40% of tourists go on such trips. Prices for air tickets on the market are considered inflated, largely due to limited supply, and many tourists believe that the service is not comfortable and safe enough, Mr. Romashkin said.