In the wake of Russia's attack on Ukraine, the European Union has adopted its 16th package of sanctions, which primarily affects the aviation sector. New measures are aimed specifically at airlines that help Russia circumvent Western sanctions, for example by supplying aviation goods to Russia or operating Russian domestic routes. These sanctions represent a further escalation of the existing trade and economic blockades, which are aimed at financially weakening the Russian war effort and increasing pressure on the country. One of the key provisions of the new package of sanctions concerns airlines from third countries that circumvent sanctions imposed by the EU by transporting aviation goods to Russia or even operating Russian domestic routes. Airlines that engage in such activities risk losing their operating license in the EU in the future. This measure particularly affects those companies that use clever circumvention strategies to enable Russia to continue to have access to Western aviation resources that are difficult to access due to the sanctions. Aircraft spare parts, for example, are now difficult to obtain in Russia due to export bans from the EU, Great Britain and the USA. The West has introduced these sanctions to weaken the Russian aviation industry by severely limiting the availability of spare parts and technology. The impact of these sanctions is clearly felt in the Russian aviation industry, as many aircraft are no longer operational due to a lack of spare parts. To counteract this shortage, Russia has tried to attract airlines from third countries that are willing to fill this gap and fly to Russia. The EU is now reacting sharply to such activities in order to further increase the pressure on Russia.