Russia’s federal aviation agency, Rosaviatsiya, imposed flight restrictions for the second time on Sunday after what it described as the appearance of dozens of Ukrainian drones in the Moscow region.
The measures affected four airports - Vnukovo, Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo and Zhukovsky - as authorities said they were acting “to ensure flight safety amid an aerial threat.”
Initial restrictions were in place from 3:25 p.m. to 4:40 p.m. Moscow time. Roughly 40 minutes later, a temporary special regime for airspace use was reintroduced at Vnukovo, Domodedovo and Sheremetyevo. During that window, flights were permitted only with clearance from relevant state agencies. Less than an hour later, operations were again fully restricted.
“Temporary restrictions have been introduced within the Sheremetyevo airport airspace perimeter due to activation of the ‘Kover’ signal,” Sheremetyevo management said at 6:30 p.m. Moscow time.
The airport advised passengers to prepare for longer waits and warned of possible schedule adjustments.
Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said on social media that Russian air defenses had allegedly shot down about two dozen drones heading toward the city.
Sunday’s mass drone raid on the Russian capital is not the first this year. In January, attacks on Moscow were recorded on several consecutive days, prompting restrictions at Vnukovo, Domodedovo and Zhukovsky and causing widespread delays that affected roughly 200 flights.
