Seized Russian cargo jet will stay at Pearson Airport in Mississauga until it’s fit to fly

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Published June 23, 2023 at 4:57 pm

Russian Cargo Plane in Mississauga being fought over by Russia and Canada
A Russian cargo aircraft like this one has been stranded at Pearson Airport in Mississauga since Feb. 27, 2022.

A huge Russian-owned cargo plane seized two weeks ago by Ottawa after being grounded at Pearson Airport in Mississauga since Feb. 27 of last year remains on the tarmac and isn’t going anywhere until it’s fit to fly, Canada’s transport minister says.

The Antonov An-124 aircraft, the world’s largest production cargo plane, will eventually leave Pearson for Ukraine as part of a new aid package offered by the Canadian government to the embattled nation.

But first, Federal Transport Minister Omar Alghabra told insauga.com in a telephone interview today (June 23), a couple of hurdles must be cleared.

“There’s still some maintenance to be done (to ensure it’s safe to fly),” said Alghabra, noting the aircraft has been sitting unused for well over a year. “And there’s also a legal and administrative process (to work through). I don’t know exactly when it will leave (Pearson) … there are a lot of moving parts.”

During an unannounced visit to Kyiv two weeks ago to show Canada’s support for Ukraine’s fight against Russia, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that the seized Russian-owned plane will soon be given to his nation so it can never be used by Russia again.

The cargo plane, registered to Russia’s Volga-Dnepr Airlines, has been at Pearson for 16 months now after being grounded immediately after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The huge aircraft landed at Pearson on the morning of Feb. 27, 2022, just before the Canadian government declared the country’s airspace closed to all Russian-owned planes in the wake of the invasion.

Since then, the aircraft’s previous owner racked up about $500,000 in Pearson parking fees, payable to the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA), which runs the airport.

As of April 17, the parking bill was about $425,000, continuing to grow by $1,108.80 each day (77 cents per minute as of implementation of new fees on Jan. 1, 2023), according to Pearson’s aeronautical charges and fees schedule.

It hasn’t been revealed if the GTAA has collected any of that money or if it will pursue the cash moving forward.

Back in February 2022, the plane was reportedly bringing a shipment of COVID-19 test kits from China to Pearson via Russia and then Anchorage, Alaska, where it apparently stopped for refuelling just before its landing in Mississauga.

Below is one of the initial social media reports back in February 2022 that identified the stranded cargo plane.

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