23.09.2025
3min
Russia Patches Up Sukhoi Aircraft with Parts from Occupied Crimea
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- The “Fiolent” plant, located in occupied Crimea, supplies components for the SJ-100 aircraft – including rotary contact transformers, generators, motors, and precision electromechanical machines.
- Fiolent manufactures parts not only for the SJ-100 but also for the Tu-214 and MC-21 aircraft – specifically components that replace products originally made by Japan’s Tamagawa.
- Russia’s “import substitution” in aviation is largely superficial – the SJ-100 project was left without certified components after the termination of cooperation with PowerJet, a French-Russian joint venture.
- The lack of international certification poses safety risks – the new components do not undergo international certification.
- Russian media report “successful tests,” but the evidence is questionable – there are numerous reports of failures in navigation systems, electronics, engine overheating, and more.
- U.S. sanctions against Fiolent have been in place since 2014, but other countries remain silent – no restrictions from the EU, the UK, Switzerland, Japan, Australia, or New Zealand.
- The plant’s director, Aleksandr Batalin, hasn’t yet been included in any sanctions lists, despite his role in supplying strategic aviation components for Russian aircraft.
The Crimean Footprint in Russian Aviation
Screenshot from the Internet
Screenshot from the Internet
According to Ukrainian outlet BlackSeaNews, “Fiolent” is involved in producing precision, low-power electric machines that replace components previously supplied by the Japanese company Tamagawa for the SJ-100, SJ-New, and MC-21 aircraft. These may include sensors, inductors, or rotary devices used in control systems or power supply systems.
SJ-100: Import Substitution on Paper
The Certification Problem
How “Fiolent” in Crimea Survived Sanctions –and Even Thrived
It has been over a decade since the United States first added the Crimean “Fiolent” plant to its sanctions list, back in August 2014. That might have been decisive –except for one problem: the rest of the civilized world largely ignored the plant. To this day, there are no direct sanctions against “Fiolent” from the EU, the UK, Switzerland, Japan, Australia, or New Zealand.
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