Airlines Face Major Business Disruptions From Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine
Photo Credit: Airlines face major disruptions from the Russia invasion of Ukraine. Getty Images / aapsky
Skift Take
Russia's invasion of Ukraine will ripple throughout the airline industry, most immediately through high oil prices and airspace closures. But if the West and Russia trade sanctions and restrictions, easy flights between North America, Europe, and Asia could be a thing of the past.
Ukraine Coverage
Skift’s reporters and editors are working to explain how the war on Ukraine is impacting travel. All of our stories about the subject are free for all readers.Global airlines could face severe disruptions from Russia's invasion of the Ukraine that could escalate if the West and Moscow volley sanctions at one another.
Airlines, like Ryanair, Wizz Air, and Qatar Airways which as recently as Wednesday were flying to Ukraine, announced Thursday morning that flights to the country had been cancelled. Ukrainian airspace and the airspace over parts of Russia were closed to commercial traffic overnight. "Due to the closure of Ukrainian airspace overnight, and the apparent invasion by Russia forces, all Ryanair flights to and from Ukraine have been suspended for at least the next 14 days," Ryanair said in a statement.
Hungary's Wizz Air is scrambling to evacuate several personnel and to move at least four aircraft stranded in Ukraine, Bloomberg first reported. It remains unclear how operational Ukraine's airports are. Overnight reports from the ground suggested that Russia shelled Kyiv's main international airport
