The United States government is expected to announce a ban on Russian flights from US airspace on Wednesday, government and industry officials told Reuters.
This came after a late announcement Tuesday that United Airlines had said it had temporarily suspended flights over Russian airspace, joining other major US carriers that have taken the lead after Russia. invasion of Ukraine.
IN the White Housewho declined to comment on Tuesday, held extensive talks with US airlines in recent days on the issue.
United continued to fly over Russian airspace to operate some flights to and from India in recent days.
Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and United Parcel Service have confirmed this week that they have suspended flights over Russia as the White House believes it has banned US carriers from flying over US airspace after Canada and the European Union.
The logo of the leading Russian airline Aeroflot is visible on Airbus. Airlines such as Aeroflot are facing a ban on US airspace
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The European Union has spoken with US counterparts about extending the ban on Russian flights, he said on Tuesday, giving more details on the closure of EU airspace for Russian planes following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Airlines are already facing potentially prolonged blockades of key east-west corridors after the EU and Moscow issued airspace bans. Washington did not rule out such actions.
Asked if he was in talks with the United States after the European ban, a senior EU official told reporters: “Yes, there are discussions with the United States about what measures to take.”
The EU envoy said Russian oligarchs, even those with dual citizenship, would not be able to circumvent the EU’s airspace ban.
“It doesn’t matter if they are EU citizens, if they are Russian citizens, they will be covered,” the official said.
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“Russian citizens or a Russian company cannot rent, own or control an aircraft that will fly in the EU, outside the EU or fly over the EU. So that’s the rule.
Global supply chains, which are already heavily affected by the pandemic, will face growing disruption and pressure on the cost of closing the skies, which will affect more than a fifth of air cargo.
Russian carriers, which account for approximately 70% of Russian-EU flights, are likely to be hardest hit.
Transport between Europe and North Asian destinations such as Japan, South Korea and China is on the cutting edge after reciprocal bans banned European carriers from flying over Siberia and prevented Russian airlines from flying to Europe.
Airlines responsible for moving about 20 percent of the world’s air cargo are affected by the bans, Frederick Horst, managing director of Cargo Facts Consulting, told Reuters on Tuesday.
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Germany’s Lufthansa, Air France KLM, Finnair and Virgin Atlantic have already canceled cargo flights to North Asia due to closed access to airspace.
Lufthansa Cargo will also reduce some flights in the coming weeks after Russia’s airspace was closed, a spokesman for the German company said on Tuesday.
Scandinavian airline SAS has said it will reorient its Copenhagen-Shanghai service once a week to avoid Russian airspace, and has also suspended its Copenhagen-Tokyo service.
However, major Asian carriers such as Korean Air Lines and Japan’s ANA Holdings still use Russian airspace as well as Middle Eastern airlines.
Alaska Airlines has said it will suspend its partnership with Russia’s S7 Airlines due to fears of a humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.
United Airlines is among many that have suspended all flights in Russian airspace
The shortage of delivery containers and bottlenecks in ports mean that more products are transported by air. Demand for air cargo last year was 6.9% above 2019 levels, according to IATA.
Taiwan’s EVA Airways said on Tuesday that its cargo flights to and from Europe were operating normally and would consider adding more services to meet market demand.
China Airlines, also based in Taiwan, said it would adjust its cargo capacity depending on the situation.
Asia-North America freight routes are expected to be less affected than European routes, analysts say, as many carriers already use Anchorage, Alaska, as a freight center and landing point.
UPS and FedEx Corp earlier cut off supplies to Russia. Deutsche Post said its DHL unit was stopping incoming shipments to Russia.
Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. said Tuesday they are monitoring any disruptions in supply chains as a result of what Russia calls a “special operation” in Ukraine.