Avinode, a sourcing platform for charter operators and brokers, responded to a report it is being used by Russians to avoid sanctions.
A business-to-business platform used by charter operators to list aircraft available for charter and by brokers to source aircraft for client charter requests has responded to a Swedish news report that it helped companies evade sanctions against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Avinode Group has been part of the U.S.-based Hearst Corporation’s Camp Systems group since 2024.
The company is based in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Avinode bills itself as “the world’s largest and most advanced air charter sales and sourcing platform.”
Charter jets tied to Russian owners have been seized since it invaded Ukraine.
The report about Avinode last week came via SVT, a Swedish television network.
Its Nyheter program reported, “Despite Russian private aviation being banned within the EU following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, SVT’s investigation shows that Avinode is being used by the Russian elite, including oligarchs and individuals under sanctions, to continue flying internationally.”
It claimed, “Russian brokers have opened offices in countries including Turkey, Cyprus, and the United Arab Emirates.”
SVT continued, “In this way, they can conceal Russian connections and maintain access to the European market despite sanctions.”
Avinode responded with a statement that started, “Facts are important.”
It continued:
‘Avinode offers a platform for air charter operators and brokers to connect. The responsibility for the collection and verification of passenger information, including screening passengers against applicable sanctions lists, lies with the aircraft operator and the relevant national authorities responsible for each flight.’
Avinode added, “As for our responsibility, it is Avinode’s clear policy not to encourage or facilitate the circumvention of sanctions laws.”
The statement said, “Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Avinode terminated memberships for all customers based in Russia and Belarus.”
It continued, “Where our processes identify entities linked to sanctioned individuals or organizations, we remove them.”
It said, “That work is ongoing.”
Avinode contiuned:
‘Avinode maintains a formal Know-Your-Customer process, which was strengthened in 2022, and has since been further enhanced in relation to sanctions and export control compliance. The Know-Your-Customer process is overseen by a dedicated compliance team and includes daily screening of customers against applicable sanctions lists. We also perform a thorough screening of prospective customers as a condition of joining and remaining on the Avinode platform.”
Avinode also specifically addressed the SVT report.
In a statement posted on its website, Avinode wrote, “We note that SVT’s reporting references Your Charter. Your Charter is not and has not been a customer of Avinode since April 2022, when its membership was terminated as part of the actions taken following the invasion of Ukraine.”
The company added, “We remain committed to ensuring that our platform operates in compliance with applicable laws, including sanctions and export control laws.”
READ: 16 reasons to use a private jet charter broker
While Avinode would be subject to restrictions as a U.S.-owned company, it is still possible to apparently book travel from Russia to the EU and the U.S.
For example, Turkish Airlines and Qatar Airways both list flight connections from Moscow to EU destinations, including Stockholm.
Traveloka, a Singapore-based travel booking platform, lists flights on Emirates Airlines between Moscow and a variety of destinations, including Los Angeles.
It’s also possible to find a flight from Sweden to Russia.
The Swedish website for Dubai-based Emirates (below) shows flights between Stockholm and Russia listed for sale.
While Avinode is a B2B brand as a broker sourcing tool, it provides brokers with white-label quoting interfaces for websites and apps.
The apps enable consumers to request quotes from operators and aircraft on the platform via the broker.
However, Avinode does not sell the flights.
Operators pay to list aircraft and post charter availability.
Brokers pay to subscribe and access the database.
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