Former Russian civil aviation chief Alexander Neradko has been arrested in Moscow and charged with large-scale fraud, according to court records and law enforcement sources. His former deputy, Konstantin Makhov, was also detained and placed in pre-trial custody. A district court ordered Neradko held for two months and Makhov for one month and seven days, pending investigation into the alleged embezzlement of state funds.

The charges, brought under part 4 of article 159 of the Russian Criminal Code, carry a maximum sentence of 10 years. Russian investigators say the case centres on the construction of a second runway at Moscow’s Domodedovo airport, a project launched in 2014 with a state contract worth 12.85 billion roubles. The runway was to be completed by 2016, but the main contractor entered bankruptcy, work stalled, and the facility remains unfinished. Law enforcement sources cited by Russian media estimate the misappropriated sum at around 800 million roubles. The unfinished runway has been seized as material evidence.

Some Russian media reports, citing anonymous security sources, have also linked the investigation to the alleged sale of dozens of civilian aircraft abroad in 2020–2021, with a number of those aircraft later reportedly appearing in Ukraine. However, this line of inquiry has not been confirmed by official statements, and the primary focus of the criminal case, as described in court filings, remains the Domodedovo runway contract.

Neradko led the Federal Air Transport Agency, Rosaviatsia, from 2009 until his dismissal in September 2023. His tenure was marked by repeated clashes with the Transport Ministry and criticism over aviation safety oversight, including a government reprimand in 2022. Makhov served as his deputy until 2017 and later held executive roles in companies linked to businessman Arkady Rotenberg. A separate former deputy, Sergei Timoshenko, was arrested last year on bribery charges unrelated to the current case.

The investigation is being conducted by the Interior Ministry’s transport department with operational support from the FSB. Both men remain in detention while the inquiry continues. No trial date has been set.