Photo: Shutterstock Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency, Rosaviatsia, issued a series of official announcements overnight about temporary restrictions imposed at airports across the country.
In the Moscow region, operations were affected at several major airports. Rosaviatsia reported restrictions at Vnukovo, Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo and Zhukovsky airports, with flights at Vnukovo and Domodedovo being accepted and taken off in coordination with authorities at some stages of the incident following temporary restrictions on the use of airspace in the region.
The authority noted that flight schedules may be subject to changes and that the measures are intended to ensure flight safety.
The restrictions were not limited to the capital. Rosaviatsia also issued notices of temporary restrictions at other airports, including Sochi and Gelendzhik in southern Russia, as well as at other fields across the country. These notices also emphasized that these were measures taken for flight safety purposes.
Alongside the flight restrictions, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin issued a series of official updates overnight about the interception of unmanned aerial vehicles heading toward Moscow. He said that after the interceptions, emergency services teams were working in the areas where the debris fell.
It is important to emphasize that Rosaviatsia does not attribute any specific restrictions directly to UAVs in the operational announcements themselves. Therefore, it is correct to say that the restrictions at airports were imposed in parallel with the officially reported UAV incidents in the Moscow region, and not to establish a causal relationship in every case.
For passengers planning to fly through Russia today, this means that even after a restriction is lifted at a particular airport, flight schedules may still be affected by disruptions and operational adjustments. Rosaviatsia itself is directing passengers to check the status of their flights on the official flight schedules of the airports.