Florida-based firm owned by Soviet-born émigré helped Russian civil aircraft obtain sanctioned spare parts

Cover photo: De Havilland Canada DHS-8-400 aircraft of Russia’s Aurora Airlines

Miami Technics, a Florida-registered company, shipped two consignments of Timken bearings for DHS-8-400 aircraft to Russia this year, according to an investigation by The Insider, which analyzed Russian customs transaction databases. These parts, classified under code 848220, are subject to a U.S. trade embargo, meaning they are banned from export to Russia by default. The deliveries were listed as originating from Miami, Florida, with the United States as the country of shipment; however, Armenia was noted as the “trading country.”

Since the start of the year, Miami Technics, led by Albert Poghosyan, has imported $400,000 worth of aircraft parts into Russia, including $292,454.32 of equipment falling under export controls. Besides Timken parts, Poghosyan's firm supplied ignition coils from American Champion Aerospace, braking system valves from the American Aircraft Braking Systems Corporation, aviation fire alarm system parts from American Kidde Aerospace, and a check valve from British Hayward & Green Aviation.

In 2023, Miami Technics imported $3.2 million worth of parts from the U.S. to Russia, including over $1.5 million worth of embargoed items. The Insider has reached out to Miami Technics, Timken, Hayward & Green Aviation, Champion Aerospace, Kidde Aerospace, as well as the U.S. Customs Service and the U.S. Department of Commerce for comment.

A phone number previously listed on the Miami Technics website was found to be active, and a man with a slight Eastern European accent answered The Insider’s call. When asked to speak with Albert Poghosyan, he asked for clarification on the purpose of the call and the identity of the caller. Upon learning that his interlocutor was a journalist from The Insider inquiring about shipments to Russia, the man claimed the caller had the wrong number and denied any association with Miami Technics.

Public records from Palm Beach County, Florida, indicate that Albert Poghosyan was born in 1986 in Armenia (then part of the USSR), as stated in his marriage license.

Grounding Russian Aviation

International sanctions have created an unprecedented challenge for Russia’s civil aviation sector by limiting companies’ access to critical aerospace components. Efforts to manufacture spare parts domestically have not kept pace with demand, and substitute components often underperform. As a result, Russian carriers have turned to sub-leasing aircraft from so-called “friendly” countries and exploiting legislative loopholes to keep their planes in the air.

Sanctions, supply chain disruptions, and increased manufacturing demands from the military sector have all contributed to Russia's record number of aircraft “incidents” in 2023, according to GlobalData analysts. The Russian performance stands in sharp contrast to that of the global aviation sector, where fatalities have seen a decrease.

There were at least 180 aviation accidents in Russia last year — more than double the number recorded in 2022 — as reported by the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta Europe. Eleven of these incidents occurred in the first nine days of December alone.

The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) has designated Russia with “red flag” status, ranking it among the four most dangerous countries to fly in globally, alongside Liberia, Bhutan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.