Helm of problems: fines for unauthorized flights will rise to 1 million

For unauthorized flights, airlines will double their fines to 1 million rubles. Such a bill by the head of the State Duma Committee on Labor, Yaroslav Nilov, will be submitted to the State Duma on February 27, and it has received government support, however, subject to revision. The initiative was developed after the crash of the Vityaz-Aero Mi-8T helicopter in 2024, which was transporting tourists to Kamchatka. How the deputies explain the need to adopt the bill is in the Izvestia article.

Why they want to increase fines for air carriers

They want to increase fines for violating air travel rules to 1 million rubles. As Izvestia found out, a bill with such amendments to the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation will be submitted to the State Duma on February 27 by Yaroslav Nilov, head of the Committee on Labor, Social Policy and Veterans' Affairs from the LDPR faction.

«The need to develop a draft law is due to the fact that today in the Russian Federation there are a number of companies that provide services related to short-term flights in one form or another (sightseeing, "aerial rendezvous", "aerobatic flight") and, unfortunately, tragic incidents sometimes occur with aircraft performing these flights>," says the explanatory note to the bill, which is available to Izvestia.

It also notes that all accidents are dealt with by the competent authorities, however, a situation is unacceptable when airlines operate without appropriate and necessary certificates, licenses, permits, permits.

According to the document, it is proposed to introduce a new rule on punishment for repeated violation of articles of the Administrative Code 11.3 "Actions threatening flight safety", 11.4 "Violation of the rules for the use of airspace", 11.5 "Violation of the rules for the safety of aircraft operation".

In this regard, depending on paragraph , Article 11.3 of the Administrative Code proposes to provide fines for officials from 2 to 60 thousand rubles, for legal entities from 20 to 100 thousand. In Article 11.4 of the Administrative Code — for citizens from 40 to 100 thousand rubles, for officials — from 100 to 300 thousand, for legal entities — from 500 thousand to 1 million rubles, or administrative suspension of activities for up to 90 days. Currently, the maximum penalty under these articles is 20 thousand rubles.

In Article 11.5 of the Administrative Code "Violation of the rules of safety of aircraft operation", set a fine for citizens in the amount of 3 to 5 thousand rubles or deprivation of the right to fly an aircraft for up to a year, for officials — from 6 to 40 thousand, for legal entities — from 80 to 150 thousand rubles. Currently, the maximum amount is 100 thousand rubles.

"The increase in fines is due to the fact that repetition is a consequence of a conscious offense," the document emphasizes.

Yaroslav Nilov explained that the reason for writing the bill was an article in the newspaper Izvestia, which reported on substandard services of air carriers and accidents that occurred due to their fault. In 2024, the editorial staff published a story about the causes of the Mi-8 crash on August 31 in Kamchatka. The helicopter collided with the ground in dense fog and completely burned down. There were 19 passengers and three crew members on board. They all died. The Rostransnadzor document listed multiple violations that affected flight safety.

— We have worked on this issue with the Ministry of Transport and eventually received a positive government opinion. Now we are introducing a bill that has a high probability of being passed. The only point is to ensure the safety and quality of passenger services," Yaroslav Nilov emphasized.

Why do carriers shy away from fulfilling the requirements

The concept of the draft law, aimed at preventing offenses in this area, deserves attention — the government supports the bill, provided it is finalized, according to a response from the Cabinet of Ministers, which is available to Izvestia.

«The explanatory note to the draft law does not contain the results of an analysis of practice and statistical data indicating the ineffectiveness of the current legal regulation. In particular, there is no data on the number of persons held accountable under Articles 11.3, 11.4, 11.5 of the Administrative Code, including repeatedly, which does not allow us to conclude that the proposed changes are appropriate," the document says.

The press service of the Ministry of Transport informed Izvestia that they support the bill.

The editorial board sent requests to companies that provide services related to short-term flights.

— Indeed, incidents of air travel have become more frequent in Russia recently, and this applies not only to small aircraft. For example, not so long ago there was a case with a YuVT Aero aircraft flying from Gorno-Altaysk to Kazan, when the pilots simply turned down the volume of radio communication with the dispatchers who were trying to call them. It would seem that this is not such a serious incident, but we have more and more such incidents," Kirill Yankov, chairman of the Union of Passengers of Russia, explained to Izvestia.

Oleg Pavlov, head of the Public Council at Rospotrebnadzor, also considers the new standards relevant, as domestic tourism is growing in popularity in Russia, and small aircraft flights are becoming more and more in demand. He also drew attention to the growing number of accidents involving air carriers. Therefore, tougher fines should discipline airlines, the expert emphasized.