The airplane and helicopter, which were owned by companies associated with Ravil Ziganshin, the son-in-law of the CEO of PSO Kazan, will soon be auctioned off at the request of a creditor. The Bombardier CL-600-2B16 aircraft has an initial cost of 611 million rubles, and the Bell 429 helicopter is priced at 202 million rubles. As reported by BUSINESS Online, the paperwork process is currently underway, and once completed, anyone can purchase Ziganshin’s aircraft.
The aircraft's seizure followed an arbitration ruling in favor of Algor-Stroy LLC. According to the Kontur.Focus database, Algor-Nedvizhimost LLC fully owns and operates the company. Our sources indicate that Algor-Nedvizhimost serves as a collection unit for Ak Bars Bank, having inherited this function from the now-defunct Bank Debt Center LLC. The bank denies any connection with Algor. The bank’s press service stated, “The loan was previously issued by Ak Bars Bank, but at present, PSO Kazan is not a debtor of the bank. Algor-Nedvizhimost has no ties to the bank.”
The CL-600-2B16 aircraft was seized due to a lawsuit by Algor-Stroy LLC against Basma LLC, which was once wholly owned by Timur Zainutdinov, the son-in-law of Ravil Ziganshin. The Bell 429 helicopter was seized in a claim by Algor-Stroya against LLC Bell-Limited, which is wholly owned by LLC Basma.
On January 19, the press service of the UFSSP for the Republic of Tatarstan announced that the bailiffs of the Laishevsky district had seized a plane and a helicopter worth 800 million rubles. The bailiff appointed the management company representative of the debtor as the responsible custodian and imposed storage restrictions. The seizure was due to the debtor’s failure to fulfill financial obligations.
Ziganshin’s aircraft are being taken away due to debts, including his Bombardier personal business jet
At the request of BUSINESS Online, the bailiffs could not disclose the debtor’s identity, citing confidentiality. However, they confirmed that the aircraft owner did not repay the debts within the mandatory 10-day period. As a result, the seized property documents were passed to the management of the Federal Property Management Agency in the Republic of Tatarstan and the Ulyanovsk Region, for organizing auctions.
The seized plane and helicopter indeed belong to LLC Basma and Bell Limited, as confirmed by our correspondent at the Tatarstan department of the Federal Property Management Agency. Notifications of readiness for selling the seized debtor's property have been received, and the forced sale of the aircraft is pending.
The helicopter has not yet been prepared for sale, but its documents are already with the Federal Property Management Agency for content and completeness inspection. If approved, the aircraft will be auctioned online at www.torgi.gov.ru, under the category “Sale of debtors’ property.” Any interested party can make the purchase, and the proceeds will be distributed among the claimants by the bailiff service after the sale.
The CL-600-2B16 aircraft costs 611 million rubles and the Bell 429 helicopter costs 202 million rubles. Algor-Stroy is claiming 611 million rubles from Basma and 202 million rubles from Bell Limited. If the 'birdies' are sold at the initial price, the creditor will be completely satisfied. A request was sent to the press secretary of the PSO Kazan in the messenger, but there was no response.
Colors faded, cloth seats dented…
What is known about the cars getting ready for public auction? Only helicopters from the main builder of Tatarstan have been highlighted in the public field. In 2017, a passenger Bell-407 crashed near Sviyazhsk, which was allegedly frequently used by Ziganshin personally. The press service of the PSO Kazan then stated that the crashed ship belonged to Basma LLC and was used for business trips. Another helicopter, an 11-year-old Bell-429 with tail number 57108, is set to be auctioned.
According to public sources, the Bell-429 is considered one of the most advanced light twin-engine helicopters. It can be operated by a single pilot and is equipped with navigation equipment certified to instrument flight rules. The Bell-429 can keep flying with one engine off and promises comfort to passengers, with minimal vibrations and quiet engines. It's designed to carry up to 7 passengers, but Ziganshin’s helicopter can only take 6 on board. It has a flight range of 800 km at a speed of 273 km/h. The helicopter was certified in Russia in July 2011 and was reportedly delivered to Ziganshin at the beginning of 2013 at a cost of $7 million, excluding VAT and customs.
The helicopter has been actively used for 11 years, resulting in a 'tired' interior with faded colors and dented fabric seats. Unlike the helicopters, Ziganshin's plane did not appear in the public field. The 10-seat Bombardier CL-600-2B16 business jet, serial number 5803, is 14 years old and registered with Ak Bars Aero. There is no available photo of the interior of the arrested side, but it is known from open sources that these planes have enlarged windows, a spacious cabin, a kitchen, video systems, and sleeping places.
The estimated value of the aircraft, which Algor-Stroy will sell, is 611 million rubles, but the actual price may be higher. According to public sources, the cost of a 10-year-old pre-owned Challenger 605 is around $10 million (just over 700 million rubles) at the current exchange rate, depending on factors such as total flight hours, take-off and landing cycles, overall condition, and installed equipment.
Another detail about the aircraft's history is that the bailiffs' press service stated that the use of the seized aircraft and helicopter was prohibited. However, the flightradar24 portal, using the serial and registration number of the seized Bombardier, shows a significant flight history. Just in the past week, since January 28, the business jet completed 8 flights, traveling between Kazan, Moscow, Sochi, Dubai, and Istanbul. At the time of publication, the plane was flying from Istanbul to Kazan on February 1.
“You can make something appear better than it really is, and then sell it”
Aviation experts believe that the aircraft put up for auction may attract buyers. Azat Hakim, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Tulpar Group of Companies, states that the Challenger 605 aircraft is in demand, regardless of its age, as long as it is airworthy – specifically the engines and landing gear. The initial cost of 611 million rubles is considered reasonable. Hakim suggests that it could be purchased for 500-600 million rubles by both companies and individuals in need of a plane. The Challenger 605's advantage is its maintenance in Russia, availability of pilots, and access to necessary spare parts through parallel imports. However, a drawback is its age: 14 years old.
However, without seeing the documents and the car itself, it is difficult to determine its true value. The expert also added that “You can sell anything, you can make something appear better than it really is, and then sell it without seeing the data on the car, it’s hard to say.”
Magomed Zakarzhaev, General Director of OJSC Kazan Aviation Enterprise, is confident that the arrested Bell-429 will also find a new buyer, considering the model's desirability, especially due to sanctions limiting the import of foreign equipment. The Bell-429 is the latest in the Bell lineup, designed for general use, with an ideal price-to-quality ratio for twin-engine helicopters. Zakarzhaev praises its quality and popularity both in Russia and globally.
Estimating the initial cost of a helicopter is challenging, according to Zakarzhaev, because the technical condition and remaining life of the engines must be considered. He stated, “I don’t know the technical condition of this aircraft. We haven’t seen it in a long time, I think it’s worth 2-3 years. But overall, helicopters, especially this type, are in demand in Tatarstan, Moscow, and Russia in general, so there will be interested buyers.”
What else was taken from Ziganshin?
Recall that the helicopter and the plane are far from all that the creditors have already taken from the structures of Ziganshin and his inner circle. Gradually, the Sviyazhsky Hills resort and a plot of 440 thousand square meters were taken away from him for debts. m in the Oktyabrsky rural settlement of the Zelenodolsky district. A huge fleet of vehicles previously owned by DorStroy and Inteko LLC, as well as equipment for road works from Trio-VIS, etc., were recovered. 7 real estate objects in the Krasnodar Territory that belonged to Tigran LLC ( 99% is owned by Zainutdinov).
Ziganshin currently owes the largest amount to the Federal Tax Service of Tatarstan – 4.755 billion rubles, together with OSK Resource LLC, they are now seeking bankruptcy of Kazan PSO.
Our sources believe that now for Ziganshin everything depends on how the contracts with Roskosmos are eventually executed. To bankrupt the builder of the launch pad for the Angara today means to delay the commissioning of the space complex for an indefinite time, which no one needs. But it is clear that creditors will not be able to wait forever for their money either. Indirectly, the fact that the whole thing is going to bankruptcy and, possibly, even to “landings”, is evidenced by the behavior of the banks lending to the Ziganshin empire. Last year, they hurried to “sue” in order to withdraw in advance all collateral assets on overdue PSO Kazan and other Ziganshin loans.
