Russian Transport Ministry suggests Vietnam consider transferring aircraft under "wet" leasing

MOSCOW. Sept 9 (Interfax) - The Russian Transport Ministry has suggested that Vietnamese authorities consider the possibility of transferring aircraft of Vietnamese carriers under "wet" leasing to Russian ones.

"We sent relevant proposals to our colleagues, they are considering them," Transport Minister Andrei Nikitin told journalists following Russian-Vietnamese high-level talks, when answering a corresponding question.

There is very good dynamics for all types of transport connecting the two countries, Nikitin said.

"For example, for air travel, there is an almost threefold increase compared to last year. And of course, we want to continue increasing air traffic, opening new access points for our airlines, and expanding cooperation," he said.

A law allowing Russian airlines to take aircraft from foreign carriers under "wet" leasing (leasing them together with the crew) was signed by President Vladimir Putin in April last year. Shortly before that, "wet" leasing was allowed in Russia only between domestic airlines and only for domestic flights. This mechanism helps lessees increase capacity (for example, during periods of high demand or when new routes appear), and lessors reduce costs for commercial fleet management and the wage fund.

The first "wet" leasing deal agreed at the end of 2024 was made by Aeroflot . The company leased three wide-body Airbus A330s together with the crew from Russia's iFly. Later the lease of a fourth such aircraft was reported. No new such agreements have been reported - neither between Russian carriers, nor with the participation of foreign ones.