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UK’s low-cost airline group EasyJet has cancelled six Airbus jet rental contracts with Russia’s State Transport Leasing Company (GTLK), Bloomberg reported.
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Citing a person with knowledge of the development, the news agency reported that EasyJet terminated the leases of the A319 narrow-body jet airliners, which were more than 11 years old.
The move comes after the UK and European Union (EU) decided to impose more sanctions on Russia over its military attack on Ukraine.
EasyJet is said to be one of the few non-Russian carriers that have taken planes on lease from Russian-owned lessors.
The UK air carrier is said to have made this move after identifying a Russian link, but was not sure at the time if it would be able to run or maintain the aircraft with quickly changing rules, the source said.
This month, GTLK was directly sanctioned by the EU and UK.
Russia has been subject to stringent sanctions by many countries, including the US and UK, since its invasion of Ukraine.
The aviation sector has taken centre stage in the global face-off between Russia and Western nations.
Recently, the European Commission added 21 Russia-certified airlines to the EU Air Safety List, which makes them subject to an operating ban or restrictions within the EU.
Meanwhile, the US Federal Aviation Administration downgraded Russia’s air safety rating to Category 2, which bars Russian carriers from codesharing with US airlines and also prohibits expansion of service.
