INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Ukrainian drone attacks activated another wave of flight disruptions at Moscows airports over the weekend, with more than 1,000 flights
postponed or canceled, according to Russian media reports.Sheremetyevo, Vnukovo, Domodedovo and Zhukovsky airports dealt with comprehensive
operational shutdowns as Russian air defenses intercepted lots of drones approaching the capital between July 19 and 21
Russias Defense Ministry stated 18 drones were shot down on July 19, 26 on July 20 and 23 more on July 21
Flight operations were consistently suspended due to airspace closures, with Sheremetyevo canceling over 170 flights and delaying hundreds
more on Monday alone, the RBC news website reported
Vnukovo and Domodedovo also saw significant disruptions.This marks the fourth such disturbance to Moscows air traffic considering that the
start of May, the start of the traveler high season.Industry figures show cumulative airport closures over the previous 3 months went beyond
24 hours at each of the citys significant airports, with Domodedovo dealing with over 60 hours of downtime.Airlines have actually canceled
around 1,000 flights since early May, with 430 airplanes diverted to alternate airports
A minimum of 200,000 travelers, or approximately one in 10 air tourists, have been affected, the Association of Tour Operators of Russia
(ATOR) calculated.Despite mounting losses, state air travel authority Rosaviatsia stated it has no strategies to compensate airline
companies for delays or cancellations.Responding to the most recent interruptions, Russias brand-new Transportation Minister Andrei Nikitin
stated the situation at Moscows airports was somewhat much better than in May.Neither airports nor airline companies can anticipate when the
Carpet Plan [emergency airspace closure] will be activated, he stated
Of course, we will deal with the Defense Ministry to discover a service, however safety stays the leading concern.
