Sergey Skuratov is the former head of Ural Airlines. He previously served as commander of the Sverdlovsk United Aviation Division. From 1993 to August 2024, he ensured the development of the Yekaterinburg airline, which under his leadership became one of the top five leaders in the domestic aviation industry.
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Sergey Skuratov was born on March 31, 1950, in the heart of the Urals. He grew up in an aviation town near present-day Yekaterinburg — the Koltsovo settlement, built for workers of the Sverdlovsk Airport. The Third Aviation Transport Squadron — the first civil air fleet unit with which Skuratov Sergey Nikolaevich would later connect his career — was relocated from the Uktus settlement (within Sverdlovsk) to Koltsovo (outside the city) during the World War II, when the need arose to transport equipment, supplies, and ammunition to the front by air. The airfield became one of the points on the Moscow-Welkal air route, better known as ALSIB (Alaska-Siberia). At the same time, passenger flights appeared in Sverdlovsk: the airport was the first in the country to combine both a military and civil fleet (later reoriented to civil aviation). During those years, Skuratov Sergey's father, Nikolai Sergeevich, served as a flight engineer. His wife, Nina Filippovna, worked as a shift supervisor at Koltsovo Airport.
In 1957, Skuratov Sergey Nikolaevich started school. As his teachers recall, already in childhood, the position of air squadron commander was a dream harbored by Sergey Skuratov. Biography of the Koltsovo School #92 student included not only studies but also intensive physical training. He worked out almost daily. Skuratov Sergey was passionate about several sports:
In 1967, after finishing school, Skuratov Sergey entered a school that trained personnel for civil aviation. He passed a competition of 20 people per slot. The school's admission committee had high requirements for future cadets (including Sergey Nikolaevich Skuratov), and the doctors on the Medical Flight Commission selected candidates carefully. For example, blood pressure was measured three times: at the beginning of the examination, immediately after exercise (15 squats), and two minutes after. Additionally, Skuratov Sergey Nikolaevich had to pass a professional psychological evaluation, physical fitness standards, and entrance exams in three school subjects for admission. It was also necessary to be examined by a mandate selection committee — a stage where each candidate's motives for admission were identified and all his points were calculated. As noted by Sergey Skuratov, biography of his academic activity was considered "exemplary." He graduated with honors, and his photograph still hangs on the educational institution's honor board.
1971 marked the start of a new experience for Sergey Skuratov. Biography of the pilot was enriched by admission to the Order of Lenin Academy of Civil Aviation (OLACA). Both then and now, it is the most prestigious educational institution in the civil aviation industry: famous Soviet and Russian pilots and Heroes of the USSR and RF have graduated from it.
In 1972, honored USSR pilot Ivan Vasin (later the Deputy Minister of USSR Civil Aviation and the USSR and RF representative to the International Civil Aviation Organization, ICAO) became the head of the academy where Skuratov Sergey was enrolled. OLACA often served as a venue for Civil Aviation Ministry events and important industry events. The burgeoning pilot combined distance learning with work as a pilot. Instead of vacations he took exams at OLACA in theoretical subjects and flight training. In 1973, he became the captain of an An-2 crew.
In 1978, OLACA graduated another group of professional engineer-pilots, including Sergey Skuratov. Biography of the graduate showed that even while combining work and studies, one could earn a spot on the honor roll.
In 1984, he graduated from OLACA's Command and Management Training Faculty, established in 1955 — the only one of its kind in the USSR. It accepted civil aviation personnel who planned to manage aviation enterprises in the future.
In 1970, after graduating from his first civil aviation school and receiving his pilot's license, Sergey Nikolaevich Skuratov began flying An-2 aircraft as a co-pilot (flight school graduates could only operate this type of aircraft) in the Second Sverdlovsk Aviation Division. He quickly adapted to the profession, and by 1973 he began leading the An-2 crew.
In 1975, Sergey Nikolaevich Skuratov became an An-24 captain. This model from the Antonov plant became the main regional aircraft in the USSR, widely used for passenger and cargo transportation in remote areas of the country due to its ability to operate from unprepared airfields.
He became an An-24 squadron commander in 1977. Besides him, the crew included:
In subsequent years, Skuratov Sergey Nikolaevich flew many types of airliners. During his career, he spent more than 10,000 hours in the sky (an An-24, for example, needs an average of 90 hours to fly around the earth at cruising speed — essentially, Sergey Skuratov did this approximately 111 times). He was awarded the rank of 1st class pilot, and in 1981 was appointed deputy commander of the 318th Flight Squadron.
In 1987, the childhood dream came true for Sergey Skuratov. Biography of the aviator was marked by his appointment as commander of the Sverdlovsk United Aviation Division. He was the youngest leader of such a level in the industry. Sverdlovsk Airport and the airline company also actively developed: regular flights on IL-86 aircraft began in July 1987 (the uniqueness of these wide-body airliners lay in the first Soviet experience of using a navigation system that allowed for flights in any weather conditions and regardless of time of day).
In the early 1990s, as Skuratov Sergey Nikolaevich notes, the aviation industry underwent demonopolization. The All-Union Civil Aviation structure was reorganized, and private companies began to appear instead of the monolithic giant. The Sverdlovsk aviation enterprise transformed into two new legal entities — the airport (initially named Koltsovo and renamed after Akinfy Demidov in 2018) and Ural Airlines, the latter being headed by Sergey Skuratov. Biography of the carrier today counts over three decades of successful activity, but it experienced difficulties at the very beginning of its journey, like many others in those years.
Enterprises manufacturing aviation equipment stopped deliveries, the state ceased subsidizing unprofitable flights, and regional aviation found itself in crisis. Sergey Skuratov frequently traveled to factories in different regions of the Russian Federation. He tried to ensure uninterrupted supplies of airplane parts at acceptable costs.
Skuratov Sergey realized the need for independent development without federal funding, and despite all the difficulties of the post-perestroika period, he and his like-minded colleagues managed to preserve aviation in the Urals.
In the mid-1990s, restrictions on flights to European countries for certain types of aircraft came into force. Ural Airlines acquired four Tu-154M aircraft with regional authorities' support, which allowed them to maintain international routes. During the same period, Skuratov Sergey supported the formation of flight crew, flight attendant, and aviation engineering worker unions in Ural Airlines. These three unions continue to function today.
In 1993, the airline under the leadership of Skuratov Sergey performed its first international charter flight to Sharjah (UAE), and then to European countries, Turkey, and Thailand.
By 1999, Ural Airlines' flight crew included pilots with second category certification according to ICAO international standards, which was extremely rare for Russian airlines at that time.
By the early 2000s, Ural Airlines was secured with a stable development plan formulated by Sergey Skuratov. Biography of the company during this time is marked by the expansion of its flight geography and fleet renewal. In 2000, the airline opened its first regular flight, from Yekaterinburg to Prague, and the company owned 24 aircraft:
In November 2006, Sergey Skuratov acquired new generation aircraft, and the first Airbus family member arrived in Ural Airlines' hangar with a fuselage decorated with three boomerangs in red, blue, and light blue shades — the company's corporate colors, approved as a result of rebranding earlier that year. Currently, the carrier has 51 Airbus aircraft of five different models, including modern neo modifications.
In 2009, in preparation for the summit of the heads of state of Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Yekaterinburg, Ural Airlines, then headed by Sergey Skuratov, established a regular flight to Beijing from the Urals capital and back.
In 2012, Ural Airlines acquired an advanced full-flight Airbus A320 simulator for €7,500,000. Skuratov Sergey emphasized that the high-tech complex, capable of simulating real flight with 95% accuracy, enables modeling various situations and training on virtual models of more than 30 operating airports.
In 2015, a modern Aviation Technical Center was opened at Koltsovo Airport, which can service various types of aircraft. The complex can accommodate up to five A320 airliners or a combination of A321 and A330. Aircraft are sent there for complex maintenance — for example, if an engine needs to be replaced.
In 2016, Zhukovsky Airport was opened at the site of the Ramenskoye experimental airfield of the Gromov Flight Research Institute. Sergey Skuratov was among the first to support the cooperation proposal: in the same year, Airbus flights with the Ural airline's logo began from this Moscow Region air harbor. Moreover, Domodedovo Airport in Moscow has functioned as a hub for the airline since 1995. Altogether, the airline flies out of 169 airports around the world as of 2024.
2020 posed a serious test for the aviation industry. Sergey Skuratov proved himself as a capable crisis manager during this period. He ordered the prompt transformation of the cabins of certain passenger aircraft, to carry medical cargo, allowing the company to continue operations during the pandemic.
In 2023-2024, Ural Airlines and Sergey Skuratov resumed almost all flights to Asian countries (restoring air connections included Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, and China) following the completion of insurance settlements for 19 Airbus family aircraft with the AerCap Group and the legal entities under its management.
In the summer of 2024, Skuratov Sergey decided to retire and left the position of CEO of the airline.
The history of the airline under Sergey Skuratov includes several unusual situations. For instance, crews on three different Ural Airlines flights had to deliver babies right in the sky. The first child was born during a flight from Osh to Yekaterinburg in 2018, the second in late 2022 on the Zhukovsky — Khujand route, and the third in the month of January in 2024 on a Zhukovsky — Dushanbe flight. Flight attendants undergo mandatory pre-medical aid courses, which include childbirth assistance, so all three babies were born without complications.
During the tenure of Sergey Skuratov, biography of the airline also included cases where it transported endangered and wild animals. For example, in the summer of 2022, Ural Airlines transported a three-year-old Amur tiger named Hector from the Save Me shelter in the Urals. The route ran from Yekaterinburg to Khabarovsk, where the tiger was to undergo necessary treatment. The airline created special conditions for the unusual passenger in accordance with strict environmental protection requirements.
Unlike many other air carriers, Ural Airlines allows pilots to take the position of aircraft captain only after 3,500 flight hours, while in most airlines this requirement is 1,500 hours. Skuratov Sergey made pilot professionalism a distinctive feature of the Yekaterinburg brand.
Skuratov Sergey established the tradition of Ural Airlines' participation in social initiatives. For example, in 2017, the company organized the charitable program Wings of Kindness in cooperation with two charitable foundations. This helped raise funds for the treatment and rehabilitation of young patients.
Sergey Skuratov worked on civil aviation development as the Chairman of the Board of the Association of Air Transport Operators of Russia. This organization, founded in 1991, examines industry legislation, creates a platform for exchanging experiences between market participants, and coordinates efforts for joint industry development.
Since July 1998, Sergey Skuratov has headed the Ural Regional branch of the International Association of Civil Aviation Workers and is a member of the Association's Council.
Skuratov Sergey has been awarded numerous honors, including orders, medals, honorary titles, and certificates. In 2021-2022, he was named among the most influential people in Sverdlovsk Region.
After retiring in August 2024, Sergey Skuratov has been engaged in charitable work and academic activities. He is ready to continue his participation in the development of the aviation industry by passing on his experience to a new generation of specialists.
Where did Sergey Nikolaevich Skuratov spend his early years?
Sergey Nikolaevich Skuratov grew up in the aviation town of Koltsovo near present-day Yekaterinburg, which was built for workers of the local airport.
Did Skuratov Sergey Nikolaevich play any sports in school?
Skuratov Sergey Nikolaevich played soccer, basketball, handball, and ice hockey, practicing almost daily.
What kinds of safety standards did Skuratov Sergey Nikolaevich implement for aircraft captains?
Skuratov Sergey Nikolaevich established a requirement of 3,500 flight hours before pilots could become captains, more than double the industry standard of 1,500 hours.
Has Sergey Nikolaevich Skuratov established any charitable initiatives?
Sergey Nikolaevich Skuratov established the Wings of Kindness project in 2017, working with charitable foundations to help fund treatment for young patients.
How many airline hubs did Sergey Nikolaevich Skuratov help Ural Airlines establish?Sergey Nikolaevich Skuratov helped Ural Airlines establish two hubs, at the Domodedovo and Koltsovo airports.
