U-TURN

Dutch Airline Turns Around Flights to Russia Mid-Air

The move comes amid mounting sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine

The Netherlands’ flag-carrier airline turned around two flights headed to Russia Saturday, amid growing sanctions on the country. A KLM spokesperson said the airline had redirected flights going to Saint Petersburg and Moscow mid-air, after the EU voted to ban sending spare aircraft parts to the country. The sanctions made it so the airline could “no longer guarantee that flights to Russia can return safely,” the spokesperson said, adding that the effect on future flights to and over the country was still being investigated. The airline had previously said it would keep flights from Amsterdam to Russian cities running. The U.S. and Europe stepped up sanctions against Russia Friday following its invasion of Ukraine. A number of countries, including Bulgaria, Poland, and Czech Republic, have banned flights from Russia completely, while the UK barred flights from Russian airline Aeroflot. Russia responded by closing its airspace to these countries, too.