Norilsk Nickel is in talks to buy a unit of Aeroflot to transport workers to and from remote production sites, said three people familiar with the matter.
Norilsk is seeking to acquire 100 percent of Nordavia, which operates flights between Moscow and Arkhangelsk and Murmansk, said the people, who declined to be identified because the talks are private.
Norilsk already has its own airline, Nordstar, which operates flights between Norilsk's headquarters in the Arctic and Moscow. Nordavia carried 1.4 million passengers in 2010 on 15 Boeing 737s and four Antonov An-24s, making it Russia's 16th-largest carrier.
(Bloomberg)
