Russia

Major Airlines Cancel Ukraine Flights as Russia Military Threat Looms

NOPE

Popular carriers like Air France and KLM suspended routes to Kyiv as tensions continue to rise in the region.

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SERGEI SUPINSKY

Multiple European airlines are suspending flights into Ukraine as the world braces for a potential invasion by Russia, which is estimated to have up to 190,000 troops near the country’s border. On Monday, Air France said it would cancel Tuesday flights to and from the capital of Kyiv as a “precautionary measure” and that it “is constantly monitoring the geopolitical situation in the territories it serves in order to ensure the highest level of flight safety.” The announcement follows German carrier Lufthansa cancelling flights to and from Kyiv and Odessa until Feb. 28—a hiatus that includes other airlines in the company’s portfolio: Eurowings, Australian Airlines, and Swiss International Air Lines. Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) also canceled its Oslo-Kyiv route scheduled for Tuesday and Dutch airline KLM has stopped trips to Ukraine indefinitely. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s infrastructure minister Oleksander Kubrakov argued the airspace was safe and that the cancellations were “dictated solely by the information aggravation of the situation, and not by real changes in flight safety.”

Read it at CNN