Moscow airports suspend flights for second night after Zelenskyy's warnings

Ivan Diakonov - 3 September, 04:10

People sleep on the floor. Photo: The Moscow Times

Moscow's Vnukovo and Sheremetyevo airports have suspended arrivals and departures for a second consecutive night after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's warnings about the danger posed by Russian airspace to civil aviation.

Source: The Moscow Times

Details: Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsia) said temporary restrictions on aircraft arrivals and departures had been introduced at airports in the Moscow region.

Three airports in the Russian capital suspended operations the previous night. According to flight-tracking service Flightradar24, 21 flights were cancelled and another 235 delayed at Sheremetyevo, while Vnukovo cancelled 22 flights and delayed 94.

Background:

On 1 September, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned airlines and insurers that, because of the war launched by Moscow and Ukraine's use of drones in response, Russian airspace was becoming completely unsafe for civil aircraft. The president stressed that Ukraine did not intend to attack passenger aircraft, but urged international companies to take military risks into account.
On 2 September, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said that Ukraine has officially informed the UN's International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) that Russian airspace is dangerous for civil aviation due to increased military activity. He said Ukraine wants to prevent incidents because Russia is deliberately ignoring safety measures.
On the same day, Mykola Kalashnyk, Ukraine's Minister for Restoration, Infrastructure and Transport sent a letter to the ICAO Secretary General calling on the organisation to recommend that member states completely ban civil aviation flights over Russia to minimise the risk of tragedies.
In response, Rosaviatsia posted a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM), stating that all documents posted by Ukraine concerning Russian airspace had no legal force and violated the Convention on International Civil Aviation.
"Russia's air transport system and its ground infrastructure continue to operate as normal, receiving and dispatching flights, including those operated by foreign airlines," the agency said.

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