The Russian invasion of Ukraine has killed hundreds, made thousands of refugees and echoed around the world.
With closed airspaces in and around the conflict leaving flights diverted, fuel price hikes looming, airlines and countries blocking Russia, and the European Union’s potentially impactful sanctions on aircraft parts, international air travel has been hit hard in a number of ways. ways since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the attack.
closed air spaces
Ukraine, Moldova and part of Belarus have completely closed their airspaces, resulting in the cancellation of flights in the countries, as well as banning regular air traffic from passing through the closed space. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) doubled down on its existing safety alert on Friday, expanding the alert for airlines and other civil operators from 100 nautical miles to 200 nautical miles from the Ukrainian border with Russia. due to fears of “medium-range missiles penetrating controlled airspace.” EASA said on Thursday that “operators should exercise extreme caution.”
“In particular, there is a risk of intentional targeting and misidentification of civil aircraft,” the agency said. “The presence and possible use of a wide range of ground and air warfare systems pose a high risk for civil flights operating at all altitudes and levels.”
As a result of the closures and military flights, airspace over Ukraine and its border with Russia is empty, according to flight tracking websites. An El Al flight bound for Toronto made a rapid reversal in Ukrainian airspace on Thursday, tracking website FlightRadar24 showed. A plane operated by LOT Polish Airlines bound for Kiev turned around, as did flights bound for Kiev operated by Air India and Aegean Airlines, according to Reuters.
There are real risks in flying over conflict zones – such as the 2014 crash of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over eastern Ukraine by a Russian-made missile, killing 298 people. Western officials and a Dutch-led investigation said Russian President Vladimir Putin was responsible for the incident, a charge Putin has denied.
February 25th, 2022 seen on https://t.co/jgJyQiJIMk pic.twitter.com/JAIdxCcO6t
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) February 25, 2022
US response
The United States government is expanding the area around Ukraine where American pilots are banned from flying, with the Federal Aviation Administration saying the no-fly region “will now cover the entire country of Ukraine, the entire country of Belarus and a western part of Russia,” in an expanded notice published Thursday. Restrictions do not apply to military operations.
Prior to this update, the FAA had banned flying only in the eastern region of Ukraine since 2014, although no US airlines operate flights to or from Ukraine.
A U.S. alert has been in effect since January, urging citizens to refrain from traveling to Ukraine due to “continuing tension along the Ukrainian border, the potential for harassment against U.S. citizens, the embassy’s limited ability to help citizens in Russia”, as well as by Covid-19 and other factors. The notice was updated on Thursday, telling Americans not to travel to Ukraine “due to armed conflict and Covid-19”, warning that the US government will not be able to evacuate citizens.
Delta announced on Friday that it will suspend most of its cooperation with Aeroflot, Russia’s largest airline. The two airlines have a code-sharing agreement, which allows passengers who book on Delta to be placed on an Aeroflot flight and vice versa. The contract was terminated immediately, Delta said.
American Airlines is rerouting its Delhi-New York flight. United Airlines, however, continues to use Russian airspace for Delhi-Chicago and Delhi-Newark flights, according to Flightradar24 and Reuters. United told CNN Business that there was no impact on their flights.
Airline stocks fluctuated as news of the invasion developed, and fares are expected to rise on account of rising oil prices and potentially longer flight routes as a result of multiple airspace closures. .
European shares
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced on Friday that his country is preparing to close its airspace to Russian airlines. “I have ordered the preparation of a Council of Ministers resolution that will lead to the closure of airspace over Poland to Russian airlines,” Morawiecki posted on Facebook.
In coordination with Poland, Czech Transport Minister Martin Kupka tweeted on Friday that from midnight Russian carriers would also be banned from Czech airspace. Kupka also announced that Czech Railways (CD) would be issuing free train tickets to any Ukrainian national wishing to leave the country on one of its trains. Free tickets are being provided to anyone with a Ukrainian passport.
The UK has banned all Russian civil aircraft from its airspace as part of a sanctions package announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, which took effect at midnight on Friday (25) and is due to expire on 23 December. May. All UK-registered flights, as well as any aircraft owned, leased or operated by an individual associated with the country, are now banned from Russian airspace, according to a statement from the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency on Friday. fair (25).
Russian national airline Aeroflot currently operates direct flights between Moscow and London-Heathrow and Gatwick, according to its website.
British Airways, which operates three flights a week to Moscow, has suspended all services to Russia. “We apologize for the inconvenience, but this is clearly a matter beyond our control,” the company said in a statement. “We are notifying customers of canceled services and offering a full refund.” The airline also warned that some flights to Asia would be rerouted, causing potentially longer flights.
“The impact for us is not big because we are now only flying to a small number of destinations in Asia and we can reroute our flights,” Luis Gallego, CEO of IAG, the parent company of British Airways which also owns Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling, to Reuters.
Some commercial airlines, including Lufthansa and Air France, had already suspended flights to Ukraine earlier in the week as tensions mounted. Virgin Atlantic is also suspending cargo flights between London and Shanghai as it considers rerouting those services, and Hungary-based Wizz Air has conveyed to customers that all flights to and from Ukraine would be suspended until further notice. The airline also announced efforts to evacuate Ukraine-based crew, their families and aircraft on Thursday.
Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) announced on Thursday (24) the suspension of flights to and from Ukraine until February 27, as a result of the closed airspace and the current situation. According to the statement, the UIA maintains a liaison with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine. “Given the difficult situation of martial law, the airline draws attention to the possibility of forced delays and feedback difficulties in the service channels of communication with passengers and counts on their understanding,” the UIA told customers.
The European Union has agreed to ban the export of aircraft and spare parts necessary for the maintenance of Russian fleets, Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said on Friday (25), after a six-hour meeting on a second wave of sanctions. Von der Leyen said the export ban would affect Russian connectivity and hit an important economic sector.
Russian decisions
In addition to the UK flight ban, Russia has suspended domestic flights to and from several airports near its border with Ukraine, including Rostov-on-Don, Krasnodar and Stavropol, until March 2. A notice to pilots said the move was “to provide security” for civil flights.
Source: CNN Brasil
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