Russia's Transport Ministry is to recommend easing import tarrifs on foreign airliners in an effort to improve aviation safety, daily business newspaper Vedomosti said on Friday.
The ministry will submit a package of proposals to the government on Friday that will include a plan to exempt Russian airlines from import tariffs when they lease foreign aircraft, the newspaper said.
Vedomosti cited a copy of the package which it said it had seen, and a Transport Ministry official. The import tarrifs would still apply to purchases of foreign aircraft, it said.
Transport Ministry officials were not available immediately for comment. Tariffs for importing foreign planes into Russia, whether bought or under lease, stand at 20 percent, said the paper. Aircraft makers Boeing and Airbus, as well as Russian airlines, have been lobbying to have the tariffs eased and the tariffs have been a stumbling block in negotiations between Moscow and Washington over Russia's accession to the World Trade Organisation.
National carrier Aeroflot is planning a big order of foreign aircraft to modernise its fleet. A series of crashes with large loss of life involving Russian aircraft or on Russian soil have prompted the government to urgently address aviation safety. According to Transport Ministry data only 46 percent of Russian planes are in good technical condition and only 20 percent of local airports are equipped with modern facilities to ensure safe navigation.