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The Ukrainian president said that Russian airspace would “effectively be closing.”
Flying near active combat zones has always carried risks. Now, those risks are expanding deep into regions previously considered safe for commercial aviation.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy issued a stark warning on Tuesday to international carriers and insurance firms using Russian flight corridors.
“Today, we want to warn every airline that uses Russian airspace, every insurer, everyone who still uses key Russian airports: the Russian sky is becoming completely dangerous,” Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address, according to Reuters.
He emphasized that Ukraine poses no threat to civil aviation, “but there will be drones in Russia’s skies and due notice must be taken.”
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Closing the skies
The warning follows weeks of escalated attacks. Moscow has launched relentless strikes on Kyiv, prompting Ukrainian forces to target Russian oil infrastructure and supply hubs in return.
“Although Russian authorities are not properly announcing it, Russian airspace will effectively be closing. The war started by Russia is closing its own skies,” Zelenskiy added.
While Western carriers already avoid the region, major airlines from China, Turkey, and the Gulf continue overflying Russia to save time and fuel.
Security analysts warn that airborne mistakes remain a grave danger.
High-altitude threats
Aviation risk firm Osprey Flight Solutions advised clients that strikes inside Russian territory will likely persist.
“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 stated, according to Reuters.
Osprey added that “it is assessed that miscalculation and/or misidentification is likely in areas related to the Ukraine conflict.”
Meanwhile, Moscow urged foreign diplomats to leave Kyiv as violence grows. Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, said, “the recommendation made to the entire diplomatic corps and foreign citizens in Kyiv to evacuate due to the systematic and constant attacks by the armed forces against the military infrastructure of Ukraine does not lose its validity, but on the contrary,” according to Agerpres.
