Volga-Dnepr Antonov An-124 carrying Covid-19 test kits seized at Toronto Pearson

An Antonov An-124 cargo aircraft carrying Covid-19 test kits ordered by the Government of Canada has been grounded at Toronto’s Pearson Airport as part of the international sanctions imposed on Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.

Like most of the European countries, Canada and the United States have issued executive orders closing their airspace to planes owned or operated by Russian companies.

The orders affect several Antonov An-124 aircraft owned and operated by the Russian cargo giant Volga-Dnepr Group, based in Ulyanovsk, Russia.

The Volga-Dnepr Antonov that landed in Toronto on Saturday 27 February at 07:00 was carrying rapid antigen tests ordered from China by the Canadian government. The aircraft, registered RA-82078, departed from an undisclosed airport in China on flight VI5854, stopping at Khabarovsk in Russia’s far east and in Anchorage before arriving in Toronto.

An exemption will be required for it to take to the skies again.

Russian registered Antonov An124 is now parked on Taxiway N in Toronto. It will sit here indefinitely. They planned a departure this morning,since cancelled.Arrived on Sunday from China via Russia & Anchorage. Russian aircraft are banned in Canadian airspace.
Volga-Dnepr RA-82078 https://t.co/OGXNFInAQU pic.twitter.com/3rfxhRDUs5

— Tom Podolec Aviation (@TomPodolec) February 28, 2022