AERZY - Aeroflot traffic drops as sanctions hit Russia's flagship airline

Russian airline Aeroflot ( OTC:AERZY ) saw its total passenger traffic drop 8.2% in the first three quarters of 2022 as compared to 2021, according to Interfax.

CEO Sergei Alexandrovsky said in an interview with the state-backed outlet that the airline group carried 31.3M passengers in total during the period. For Aeroflot, 15.9 million passengers traveled on its aircraft, while subsidiaries Pobeda and Rossiya carried 8.9M and 6.5M, respectively.

"The international market is understandably limited for us now. However, we are operating flights to all countries where we can fly,” Alexandrovsky said. "We are considering and constantly monitoring new international markets for ourselves. Africa is one of the markets that we are looking at in terms of our potential there. However, given all the restrictions, we are now primarily focused on traditional international markets. Africa has not been one of those for us.”

Elsewhere, the air carrier said it will look to recruit 3,500 pilots as it seeks to expand its domestic service and refresh its fleet with domestically produced aircraft.

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