Moscow flight cancellations surge after Zelenskyy’s warning
Vnukovo Airport via Telegram
At least 27 flights operated by foreign airlines to Moscow
airports were canceled on Sept. 2, one day after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned
that Ukrainian drones were making Russian airspace unsafe for civil aviation.
The figure was reported by independent Russian outlet Agentstvo.Novosti. The journalists noted that most of the canceled flights were operated by Turkish airline Pegasus, which flies Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport.
Turkish Airlines also canceled two flights each between Istanbul and Vnukovo.
Other canceled flights included routes to and from Vnukovo from Dubai, operated by Flydubai; Sharm el-Sheikh, operated by Nesma Airlines; and Yerevan, where Shirak Avia canceled all four of its scheduled flights to Moscow and back.
Kuwait Airways canceled flights between Domodedovo Airport and Kuwait. Somon Air also canceled one scheduled flight from Domodedovo to Dushanbe.
According to the report, Pegasus kept two of its eight scheduled Moscow flights on the timetable. Turkish Airlines kept 22 of 25 flights. Flydubai canceled only one of its seven scheduled departures to the Russian capital, while Nesma Airlines canceled one of eight flights.
The outlet noted that there were significantly fewer cancellations the previous day. On Sept. 1, only two flights failed to arrive at Vnukovo: a Flydubai flight from Dubai and an Iraqi Airways flight from Baghdad. At Domodedovo, one Belavia flight from Minsk was canceled.
No flights operated by foreign airlines were canceled at Sheremetyevo Airport on either Sept. 1 or Sept. 2.
Earlier on Sept. 2, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said Kyiv had
officially warned the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) about
the dangers of flying to Russia and urged airlines to avoid such flights.
The military war may be swinging in our favor, but the information war continues.
Just as an army needs soldiers, so does a free society need its journalists to ensure that people have access to honest, trustworthy voices to understand the world around them.
For the past five years, The New Voice of Ukraine has been working tirelessly to push back against Russian narratives and defend democracy. But we cannot do it alone.
Please consider supporting us on Patreon for just $5 a month – your donation does directly to supporting journalists and ensuring that this front of the infowar says solid and defended.
Thank you.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News
