Russian airports cancel flights amid drone attacks on Russia
Editor’s note: The story was updated with new reports about operations at Russian airports during drone strikes.
Several Russian airports have canceled flights due to the safety concerns over Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian cities, Russia’s Rosaviatsia aviation authority reported on July 6.
Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed that it had intercepted 120 drones on Russian territory overnight between July 5 and July 6.
Ukraine hasn’t commented on the report. Kyiv’s drone campaign, which has increasingly disrupted civilian air travel in Russia, is part of Ukraine’s broader strategy to undermine Russia’s logistics far beyond the front line.
Rosaviatsia confirmed the temporary pause in flights at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport, citing airspace restrictions over the capital and strong winds. At Sheremetyevo, 174 flights were canceled and 47 more were delayed, causing crowds of passengers to form at the airport.
Rosaviatsia also noted that flights at other Russian airports, including St. Petersburg’s Pulkovo, were temporarily halted due to safety concerns. Flight delays and cancellations were also announced at Strigino Airport in Nizhny Novgorod and in Kaluga.
The Kyiv Independent couldn’t immediately verify these claims.
This latest drone attack on Moscow follows an earlier Ukrainian operation targeting the Borisoglebsk airfield in Russia's Voronezh Oblast overnight on July 5.
Ukraine's General Staff reported that the strike damaged a warehouse containing guided bombs, aircraft, and other military assets.
The Borisoglebsk airfield is known to host Su-34, Su-35S, and Su-30SM jets, which Russia regularly employs in air strikes against Ukraine. Military assessments are underway, with initial reports suggesting a training and combat aircraft may have been destroyed.
NASA's Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS) detected a fire near the Borisoglebsk military airfield shortly after the strike. Residents in the area reported 8–10 powerful explosions around 2 a.m. local time, according to the Russian independent outlet Astra.
The attack on Borisoglebsk was part of a broader overnight drone campaign across Russia, with explosions and fires reported in at least six regions.
The Kyiv IndependentTim Zadorozhnyy