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The Transportation Minister is trying to downplay the threat from Ukrainian drones.
Russian officials are attempting to calm growing fears about the safety of their skies.
Transportation Minister Andrei Nikitin promised on Wednesday that domestic air travel would continue without major breakdowns, despite escalating drone activity across the country.
Speaking through the Interfax news agency, cited by The Moscow Times, Nikitin stated that civil aviation authorities are “constantly improving flight safety and airport security requirements, and we have solutions for all of this,” while coordinating closely with military and defense personnel.
“And I believe that we will not allow any significant disruption to civil aviation,” Nikitin added according to The Moscow Times.
His statements came directly after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that Kyiv’s drone strikes were turning Russian airspace into an unsafe zone for commercial aircraft.
In his nightly address to the Ukrainian people, Zelenskyy said that, despite the Russian authorities not properly announcing it, “Russian airspace will effectively be closing.”
Grounding passenger jets
The warnings quickly shifted from political rhetoric to visible disruption on tarmac boards. According to tracking data from Flightradar24, Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport logged 21 canceled flights alongside 235 delays on Wednesday alone.
At nearby Vnukovo airport, officials reported 22 outright cancellations and nearly 100 delayed departures.
Foreign carriers felt the pressure too. Turkish operator Pegasus Airlines dropped several flights into Moscow, citing technical and operational hurdles, though some routes resumed normal service later in the week.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha formally alerted the International Civil Aviation Organization that commercial flying over Russia currently carries severe safety risks.
Longer term risks
Aviation experts warn that the turmoil is far from a temporary glitch. A security advisory from risk firm Osprey Flight Solutions highlighted that while deep strikes remain focused within 300 kilometers of the border, daily attacks near major urban hubs like Moscow and St. Petersburg will likely persist through 2026.
“There is also a realistic possibility that the frequency of Ukrainian strikes will continue to increase in the short term deep inside Russian territory,” the firm noted in its report to clients.
The advisory further warned that “miscalculation and/or misidentification is likely in areas related to the Ukraine conflict,” raising serious concerns for foreign and domestic airlines alike.
