Companies that have been established or have been rumored to be connected with Viktor Bout seem to change their name often, change homebase, disappear for a while to reappear elsewhere or have their aircraft operate without any markings apparently to complicate immediate identification. Purpose of this page is to publish tracking issues or questions regarding identification of certain aircraft and/or companies.
Note 1: companies mentioned need not be involved with Viktor Bout, merely that they are mentioned in official (e.g. UN) documents as supected of being so (or have done so in the past).
Note 2: companies mentioned need not be involved in any illegal activities, merely that they are mentioned in official (e.g. UN) documents as supected of being so (by their own activities or having performed assignments for companies allegedly involved in suspect activities).
Note 3: rebranding a company or operating unmarked aircraft is in itself not a suspect activity.
This page is merely about identifying and/or locating aircraft in "certain parts of the world" (Africa, Middle East, Central Asia) and may aid in seperating fact from rumor, even clear reputations from internet rumors.

While browsing on Phoenix Aviation I stumbled on the following photo on Airliners.net; it has the following comment added: "Phoenix Aviation changed its name to AVE as of December 2005."
Skyliner magazine (Sep.2006) issue stated: "MaxAvia is the new name of Phoenix Aviation and its Dubai-based associate has been renamed AVE.com".

Someone wrote me in Feb.2006:
Cordial Tours (allegedly a VB Front in Sharjah) shared offices with Chapman Freeborn until very recently; they seem to have closed shop last week since that office is now closed.
A clean up operation or merely the end of a business ?