Against the background of increasing security risks, international air carriers have begun to reduce or cancel passenger flights to the Russian Federation. This process was initiated by the Turkish Pegasus Airlines company, after which similar decisions were made by Turkish Airlines and Egyptian Nesma Airlines. The reduction of flights is due to increased military activity in the airspace and the use of drones.
The development of events was preceded by the statement of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that the Russian sky is becoming extremely dangerous for civil aviation. Kiev had sent an official letter to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), alerting it to the threats associated with the operation of passenger aircraft in the airspace of a neighboring country.
In response to the steps of the Ukrainian side, the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency (“Rosaviatsia”) issued a NOTAM notification. The department emphasized that any document issued by Ukraine regarding the Russian airspace has no legal force. Despite this statement, a number of international partners prefer to revise their flight schedules, avoiding possible dangers.
Let us recall that since February 24, 2022, Ukrainian airspace has been completely closed, and civilian aircraft have been bypassing it. Now similar concerns are also being formed about the maintenance of regular international flights in Russian skies.
