After the start of the special operation, European countries banned Russian planes from flying over the continent, and Moscow took similar measures. Now the liners of European airlines have to establish their routes to the south, bypassing the territory of Russia, which significantly increases the range of flights, and therefore their cost.
At the same time, Chinese airlines are allowed to use Russian airspace. As The Financial Times writes, Europeans are expressing their dissatisfaction with such “injustice”. At the same time, the skies of the European Union remain closed to the Russian Federation.
Flight time between Paris and Seoul increased by three hours
said Ben Smith, CEO of Air France-KLM.
Topi Manner, chief executive of Finnair, also referred to the fact that European air carriers are in a “much more disadvantageous position” than their Chinese competitors. This Finnish airline previously used its geographical advantage to fly from northern Europe to Asian countries via Russia, but now Finnair is suffering big losses.
Thus, a Finnair flight from Helsinki to Tokyo now takes 13 hours instead of 9, as it did before the closure of Russian airspace.
Photos used: needpix.com
