Bombardier sold the jet to a former Russian oligarch company

Bombardier sold a luxury private jet in 2011 to a front company controlled by billionaire oligarch Arcady Rottenberg, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

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On Monday, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists drew attention to the secret documents that came to light in the fall as part of a massive Pandora’s paper leak.

One was the agreement reached between Bombardier and Sentonon Investments on September 30, 2011, with the ultimate beneficiary being Mr. Rotenberg. The deal is for the sale of Global Express XRS aircraft worth approximately US $ 45 million.

The document was signed by Frank Ercolanis, who was vice president of contracts in Bombardier’s business aircraft division.

Arcady Rottenberg was a childhood friend and confidant of Mr. Putin. Together with his brother Boris, he earned his fortune with Stroygazmontaz, a construction company in the energy sector.

We already know that many Russian oligarchs built by Bombardier and other aircraft manufacturers such as Gulfstream, Boeing and Airbus have commercial jets. But so far no document has been released proving that the Quebec company dealt with a company controlled by one of them.

He bought another

According to public records, the Global Express XRS aircraft purchased by Arcady Rottenberg returned to the Bombardier property in 2016. Since 2017, it has been church-owned in Florida.

In 2019, sanctions imposed by the United States in the wake of the Russian invasion of Crimea forced the Rottenberg brothers to sell two more private jets: the Challenger 300 and the Bombardier Global 5000.

According to a list created last month ForbesArkady Rotenberg has had another Bombardier aircraft since 2016: the Global 6000, built in 2015. The American magazine claims that at least five other Russian oligarchs currently have Bombardier jets.

Activities stopped

“All transactions have confidentiality rules that Bombardier must respect,” company spokeswoman Anna Christopher said yesterday. We do not disclose any information about the sale of the aircraft or whether the parties deal directly with Bombardier. ⁇

Last month, Bombardier said it had “suspended all operations with its Russian customers, including all forms of technical assistance”.

“Deciding not to do business in Russia anymore is definitely not an easy decision, but it’s the right decision,” Bombardier CEO Eric Martel told LinkedIn.

In December, Bombardier delivered the 1,000th aircraft in its Global Family of Aircraft, which went into service in 1999.

Who is Arcady Rottenberg?

Born in December 1951

Vladimir Putin was a childhood friend, confidant and former judo partner

Co-founder of SMP Bank with his brother Boris and co-founder of Stroygazmontaz Construction Company

వ్యక్తిగత Personal wealth according to Forbes: US $ 2 billion