All 4 Moscow Airports Halt Flights as Sheremetyevo Issues Air Raid Alert

All four Moscow metro area airports suspended flights Friday, with passengers at Sheremetyevo directed to shelters.

Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, Vnukovo and Zhukovsky halted arrivals and departures, Russia’s civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsia, said in a statement.

An air raid alert was announced at Sheremetyevo, where passengers were instructed to evacuate to the nearest safe areas and shelters.

Vnukovo warned travelers to prepare for lengthy waits, including aboard aircraft, saying the restrictions were imposed for safety reasons. Domodedovo said it was adjusting its flight schedule because of the temporary restrictions.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said air defenses had intercepted at least 11 drones approaching the city over several hours.

The airport statements did not provide a schedule for resuming normal operations.

The disruption followed earlier warnings from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that drone operations would increasingly affect Russian airspace.

On Sept. 1, Zelensky urged airlines operating over Russia to take account of the growing risks. He said Ukraine was not threatening civilian aviation itself, but that Ukrainian drone attacks would effectively force Russian airspace to close.

“In Ukraine, we do not want innocent lives to be lost. That is why we are warning our partners: there are no longer safe moments in Russia’s skies,” Zelensky said, noting that Russian authorities were not adequately disclosing the risks to civilian aviation.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned those remarks as a threat of terrorism and warned that Moscow would respond if aviation tragedies occurred.

Widening airspace threat

According to a Conflict Zone and Risk Database report by Safe Airspace, Ukraine’s airspace has remained closed to civilian aviation since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Russia, Belarus and Moldova have closed parts of their airspace as well, particularly near their borders with Ukraine.

Several countries, including the US, UK, Canada, France and Italy, have issued total flight bans through Ukrainian airspace due to the risk of military activity and cyberattack risks that could unintentionally endanger civilians.

Meanwhile, Russia continues intensifying the strikes on Ukraine nationwide.

According to Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Presidential Office, Russia is likely to continue mass drone attacks on Ukraine at least until its September State Duma elections, as the Kremlin seeks to show voters a “picture of victory.”

As of July 29, NATO member states had experienced roughly 80 Russian drone and missile airspace violations since 2022, raising broader concerns that Russia’s war against Ukraine could spill over into other countries’ territory.