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Mar 5, 2022 - World

Russia’s flagship airline Aeroflot to suspend international flights

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A sign reads 'Flight Cancelled' at the Aeroflot check-in counter in the Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on March 02, 2022 in Los Angeles, California

The Aeroflot check-in counter at Los Angeles International Airport on March 2. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images

Russia's flagship airline, Aeroflot, said Saturday that it will halt all international flights except to Belarus beginning Tuesday, AP reports.

Driving the news: The move comes after the country’s aviation agency recommended that Russian airlines with foreign-leased planes suspend passenger and cargo flights abroad.

  • The agency's recommendation doesn’t apply to Russian airlines that use Russian planes or foreign planes that are not at risk of being impounded as part of Western sanctions, per AP.
  • Aeroflot’s statement said "circumstances that hinder operating flights" drove its announcement, per AP.

The big picture: The U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom and the European Union announced this week that they are barring Russian-owned and -operated flights from entering their airspaces in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

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