Air France Cancels Moscow Flight After Russia Refuses to Accept Belarus Bypass

Air France cancelled a Paris-Moscow flight on Wednesday, after Russia failed to approve a new route bypassing Belarus, reported by Reuters.

Air France flight AF1154 was cancelled “for operational reasons linked to the bypassing of Belarusian airspace, requiring a new authorization from the Russian authorities to enter their territory” an Air France spokesman said.

Breaking: Russia refused to allow today’s Air France flight from Paris to Moscow to fly into Russian airspace because the flight would have avoided Belarus airspace (— a new escalation in an aviation political war between Europe and Belarus. #Belarus) pic.twitter.com/VQPQxYAjPN

— Alex Macheras (@AlexInAir) May 26, 2021

Russia seems to escalate turbulence in European aviation. Air France on Wednesday cancelled its Paris-Moscow flight after 🇷🇺 failed to approve a new route bypassing Belarus. https://t.co/0WmyfH4d3V

— Thomas Nilsen (@NilsenThomas) May 26, 2021

The European Union has urged its airlines to avoid Belarus and its airspace amid outrage over Sunday’s forced landing in Minsk of a Ryanair B737-800 jet, en route to Lithuania from Greece.

Flight FR4978 from Athens to Vilnius was “notified by Belarus ATC of a potential threat risk onboard” and changed course to “the nearest airport, Minsk” according to a Ryanair statement. Roman Protasevich, a well-known opposition activist and blogger, was arrested on arrival; allegedly under the instructions of the Belarusian government. Reuters reported that he is on a wanted list in the wake of large demonstrations following last year’s elections.

Ryanair B737 Diverts to Belarus After Being Intercepted by MiG-29 Fighter Jet

Air France, which operates several weekly services to Moscow, said it still planned to run its next scheduled Moscow flight on Friday, subject to Russian approval of a flight plan that would allow it to avoid overflying Belarus.

Source: Reuters