OREANDA-NEWS. January 30, 2014. Aeroflot transferred 49% of the shares of JSC Aurora Airlines to Sakhalin Oblast.

The transaction follows an Agreement on Co-operation signed on 6 November 2013 in the presence of Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev between Aeroflot and Sakhalin Oblast regarding joint ownership of JSC Aurora Airlines. Under the agreement, shares of JSC Aurora Airlines will be transferred in tranches from Sakhalin Oblast to other regions in the Far Eastern Federal District.

Today’s share transfer represents an important step in the creation of Aurora as a single carrier serving the whole of Russia’s Far East. The project will be developed through close cooperation with the administrations of regions in the Russian Far East.

JSC Aurora Airlines was created following an order issued by the Prime Minister. Aurora is being built on the basis of two Far Eastern regional airlines, SAT Airlines and Vladivostok Avia, which since 2011 have been part of Aeroflot Group. Aurora Airlines aims to promote the social and economic development of Russia’s Far East by creating a more efficient and accessible system of passenger flights.

The creation of the Far Eastern regional airline is part of Aeroflot Group’s strategy to create a major airline group capable of competing on the global market. The strategy includes the establishment of three regional hubs, in the Southern, North-Western and Far Eastern federal districts. The Group aims to almost triple flight numbers by 2025, making Aeroflot Group one of Europe’s five biggest airlines by passenger numbers and turnover, and a top-20 global carrier.