As a result of attacks carried out by unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) in Russian territories, at least 350 flights have been canceled at the country's major airports since the evening of May 6. This was reported by the Russian Association of Tour Operators. It is said that these restrictions have seriously affected more than 60,000 passengers, including those traveling on international routes to Istanbul and Dubai.
The issue began to be observed at Moscow's largest airports – Vnukovo, Domodedovo, and Zhukovsky. Due to the threat of drone attacks, these airports temporarily suspended the acceptance and dispatch of flights. Later, Sheremetyevo Airport also faced similar restrictions.
According to the message distributed by the Association of Tour Operators, the closure of airports was not limited to Moscow but also forced airports in cities such as Sochi, Kazan, Kirov, and Nizhnekamsk to temporarily halt their operations. Additionally, according to Rosaviatsiya, similar measures were taken for security reasons in the cities of Kaluga, Volgograd, Saratov, Samara, Ivanovo, Nizhny Novgorod, Yaroslavl, and Tambov.
In connection with the incident, on May 7, significant delays and cancellations were observed in flights of foreign airlines such as flydubai, Turkish Airlines, AJet, and Pegasus. A special plan called "Kover" was implemented at Kaluga and Zhukovsky airports. This, in turn, led to flight and arrival times being delayed by several hours.
At the same time, the rerouting of some flights also caused additional problems. Aircraft that were supposed to arrive in Moscow were redirected to Pulkovo in St. Petersburg, Mineralnye Vody, Ufa, Perm, Saratov, and Kazan airports. Specifically, more than 70 aircraft were accepted at Pulkovo Airport outside of the schedule. This caused significant queues and congestion for airport services.
According to the Baza publication, the queues at Pulkovo Airport arose due to a lack of boarding bridges. Aircraft had to wait for up to two hours for their turn, and there were instances where passengers were not even provided with water. As a result, passengers were left in difficult conditions on the planes for several hours, leading to numerous complaints from them.
Currently, it is emphasized that this crisis in air transport has seriously affected not only passengers but also tour operators in the country. The changes in the plans of tens of thousands of tourists may also lead to significant financial losses for companies in the tourism sector.
So far, officials have not provided specific information on when this situation will be fully resolved. However, Russian aviation authorities have stated that security measures are being taken and that they will continue to monitor the situation.
Photo: Andrey Titov
