The heads of the company that supports repair documentation for Mi-8 helicopters in Ukraine have Russian passports – Venislavskyi

People's Deputy Fedir Venislavsky stated that many employees of the management level of AAL Group Ltd, to whom the State Aviation Service transferred the maintenance of repair documentation for Mi-8MT(MTV) helicopters, have Russian passports. He also stated that the decision to transfer the maintenance to this company remains valid, although it creates a risk of sensitive data about Ukrainian Mi-8MT(MTV) leaking into the hands of Ukraine's direct enemy, UNN reports.

People's Deputy, member of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security, Defense, and Intelligence, Fedir Venislavsky, stated from the parliament rostrum that employees of the offshore company AAL Group Ltd, which owns the right to maintain repair documentation for Mi-8MT(MTV) helicopters, have Russian passports, and the ultimate beneficiary of the company is the Russian holding "Russian Helicopters."

The State Aviation Service of Ukraine granted the right to maintain repair documentation for Mi-8MT(MTV) helicopters to AAL Group Ltd. This decision jeopardizes the operation of Mi-8MT(MTV) by all components of the security and defense sector. According to my information, the ultimate beneficiaries of AAL Group Ltd are the company "Russian Helicopters." And many high-level employees of this company have Russian passports.

Earlier, Venislavsky appealed to the SBU and the Prime Minister with a demand to suspend the head of the State Aviation Service, Oleksandr Bilchuk, and cancel this "anti-state" decision. Despite the MP's appeal, the Cabinet of Ministers limited itself to merely suspending Bilchuk, and the decision made under his leadership remained in effect. Therefore, the people's deputy called from the Verkhovna Rada rostrum for the creation of a Temporary Investigative Commission to find out "who and in whose interests" made this decision.

Recall

The State Aviation Service, under the leadership of the now suspended Oleksandr Bilchuk, transferred powers for the maintenance of repair documentation for Mi-8MT(MTV) helicopters to the private foreign company AAL Group Ltd.

According to information from open sources, AAL Group Ltd is registered in the SAIF zone (UAE) and has certification from the Russian aircraft plant of the "Russian Helicopters" holding. Moreover, the media also report on its possible connection with "Rostec." Among other things, the company was involved in "gray" repair schemes in Iraq and Afghanistan, and in 2024, it announced cooperation with Paramount Group, which was suspected of supplying weapons to Russia.

And this is despite the fact that Ukrainian state enterprises with many years of experience sought to obtain the right to maintenance, but their appeals were virtually ignored. Former Deputy Prosecutor General Oleksiy Baganets believes that giving preference to a business connected with the aggressor country can be qualified as actions that undermine Ukraine's national security. The State Aviation Service's decision was also negatively assessed by the state concern "Ukroboronprom," which called for its review. The concern believes that such a decision creates risks of sensitive information leakage, may lead to Ukraine losing the Mi-8MT(MTV) maintenance market, staff reductions, delays in work, blocking of international contracts, and a decrease in quality control. Among the risks is also the loss of Part-145 certificates, in case of inability to verify with standards.

Ksenia Semenova, President of the Kyiv Aviation Institute, also criticizes this decision. She considers the State Aviation Service's decision an example of destructive practice that threatens defense capabilities, as the Mi-8MT(MTV) is the basis of army aviation and the Air Force of Ukraine.