Georgian Airways, its headmen – Tamaz and David Gaiashvilis, and a ground handling services provider Aero Handling Georgia, which services Russian airlines in Georgian airports, were included in the list of entities facing the risk of sanctions by Ukraine.
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Information on said persons and companies was published on the War and Sanctions portal:
Georgian Airways is a flagship carrier of Georgia based at the airport of the capital, Tbilisi. It’s a privately owned airline, which operates flights mainly to Europe and the Middle East. The company was founded in 1994 under the name Airzena. Georgian Airways is a fully private company whose 80% share is owned by David Gaiashvili. It has a modern fleet, which consists of medium-range Boeing 737 and CRJ aircraft. The headquarters of the airline is located at Tbilisi International Airport, and its director is Tamaz Gaiashvili. On May 20, 2023, after Russia’s unilateral decision to restore direct air travel with Georgia, the Georgian Airline was granted a permit to start operating direct flights from Tbilisi to Moscow. On May 10, 2023, the Russian President issued a decree canceling a flight ban with Georgia imposed in 2019, and removing visa requirements for Georgian citizens that have been in effect since 2000. Actions by Georgian Airways, which aim to significantly simplify and boost transport connections, including for Russian businessmen in Georgia, create room for devising new schemes and loopholes for circumventing sanctions and increasing the integration of Russian business into the Georgian economy.
Tamaz Gaiashvili – director of Georgian Airways, owner of Pilot LLC., and founder of Armenian airline Air Dilijans. Air Dilijans did not suspend flights to Russia and provided services to Georgian Airways. Since 2019, Tamaz Gaiashvili has been actively supporting the initiative of restoring air travel between Russia and Georgia. He is viewed as Bidzina Ivanishvili's ally.
David Gaiashvili – the owner of Georgian Airways (80%) and Tamaz Gaishvili’s brother.
Aero Handling Georgia LLC. – a company founded on April 21, 2023, which provides services to Georgian Airways, as well as Russian airlines sanctioned by Ukraine, namely, Red Wings and Azimuth Airlines. These airlines regularly fly to temporarily occupied Crimea. Thereby, the airlines and their crews are violating the rules of entering and exiting the provisionally occupied territory of Ukraine, which is subject to criminal and administrative liability. At the same time, Aero Handling Georgia and Georgian Airways are linked to each other through their founders and directors: Davit Tsivtsivadze, the founder of Aero Handling Georgia LLC, and Tamaz Gaiashvili, the director of Georgian Airways, are registered at the same address, and the second founder, Davit Kvaratskhelia, is the son of a pro-Russian Georgian figure, the head of the Georgia-Russian Friendship Center, and the head of the Neutral Georgia party, Valeri Kvaratskhelia. He is the director of Pilot LLC, the sole owner of which is the director of Georgian Airways - Tamaz Gaiashvili.
The project War and Sanctions was launched with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and the National Agency for Prevention of Corruption. It keeps a database of individuals and companies that have been sanctioned (or are at risk) following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
