Following its invasion of Ukraine in the spring of 2022, countries were quick to place sanctions on Russia and its airlines. The reciprocal measures by Russia closed Russian airspace to most airlines. With attention on the skies over the nation after the recent crash of Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Embraer Legacy 600 en route to St. Petersburg, its clear Russian airspace is far from empty. Some airlines continue to operate flights to and over Russian airspace. But which airlines are these, and what has led them to continue overflying Russia?
European Airlines
As of August 2023, four airlines within Europe are flying over Russian airspace and to Russian destinations. These are Air Serbia, Turkish Airlines, Pegasus Airlines and Belavia. This is arguably because of the countries’ close diplomatic ties to Russia. Of these, Turkish Airlines serves the most Russian destinations, seven to be precise, in both the east and west of the country. Air Serbia continues to serve four Russian cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan and Sochi.
Asian Airlines
The country which has the largest number of airlines flying to and over Russia is China, with Beijing Capital airlines, China Eastern, China Southern, Air China, Xiamen Air and Hainan Airlines mostly using the airspace to reach destinations in Western Europe. Most of the major Middle Eastern carriers, the big three being Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways, are still operating flights using Russian Airspace. Most countries in Asia have not introduced sanctions in the same way as North America and Europe, so currently the only airlines avoiding Russian airspace are those who volunteer to do so. El Al continues to operate flights directly to Moscow at the request of the Israeli government, in the face of criticism for doing so, as the government tries to maintain a balanced relationship with Kyiv and Moscow. Whilst Air India does not directly operate flights to Russian cities, it does still use the airspace on all flights from India to the US, Canada and some of Europe as flight times would be significantly increased if Russian territory was avoided. The other Asian airlines flying over Russian airspace are Air Arabia, Sri Lankan, Flydubai, Cham Wings and Uzbekistan Airways.
African Airlines
Currently a limited number of airlines based in Africa operate flights to Russia, with the four major ones being Royal Air Maroc (Moscow), Egyptair (Moscow), Air Algerie (Moscow/St Petersburg) and Ethiopian Airlines (Moscow).
How has Russian airspace closure affected Aviation?
Russian Airspace closure has had a severe impact on aviation, with some flights between Europe and Asia being lengthened by hours due to airspace avoidance. The Siberian flight corridor has previously played a large role in the way airlines planned routes, with its closure to foreign airlines until 1970 forcing airlines flying to Asia to make stops in places such as Anchorage, part of the reason it remains the hub it is today. Now, modern airliners have the range and capability to fly around Russian airspace without the need for stops, however they don’t do this without delay. The closure has forced airlines such as Kazakhstan’s Air Astana, the airline from a country with a 7,600 kilometer long border with Russia, to pay extra for fuel. Sanctions on Russia and reciprocal flight bans have reshaped commercial flight routes and will continue to affect the industry for years to come, even after the war is over.
