In St. Petersburg, Navy Day celebrations on Sunday, July 27, were marked by significant disruptions and the absence of a traditional naval parade. Over 50 drones were reportedly downed over the Leningrad region, leading to a temporary closure of Pulkovo Airport. This caused delays for over 100 flights, with many passengers accommodated directly within the terminal building. Despite the lack of a parade, city residents still gathered along the embankments to observe the holiday.
Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg is gradually resuming operations following the morning restrictions imposed due to a major drone attack on the Leningrad region, which coincided with Navy Day. The main naval parade in St. Petersburg had already been canceled, citing «general circumstances» and «security considerations.»
According to the Ministry of Defense, 51 drones were destroyed over the Leningrad region on Sunday, July 27. The large-scale attack occurred early in the morning. Governor Alexander Drozdenko reported one fatality from a fire caused by drone debris. Local reports from the village of Bolshaya Izhora showed severe damage, including burned-out apartments, shattered windows, damaged cars, and charred bathhouses.
Pulkovo Airport remained closed for five hours. More than 100 flights were delayed, some canceled, and about 20 flights were diverted to alternative airfields. A passenger, Petr Slepkov, traveling from St. Petersburg to Orenburg via Moscow, humorously remarked on the situation: «There was a `Carpet` signal over Pulkovo, and we were offered mats.» He eventually departed several hours later. He noted that passengers largely understood the delays, sleeping on mats provided by airport staff and playing board games.
Airport services performed admirably; the situation was very tiring for the waiters distributing food. It`s worth noting that the airport announced free food and drinks were available at several restaurants, so no one went hungry or felt wronged – everyone understood. Even the airport cleaning services benefited, as every corner that might have had dust or dirt is now clean, thanks to people sitting everywhere.
Sofia, another radio listener, was also waiting at Pulkovo for a flight to Moscow. Her flight was eventually combined with others and transferred to a larger capacity aircraft.
The gate was changed three times, and at one point, the display boards stopped working, meaning all information was received solely by audio, which certainly made comprehension difficult. There was also an Indian family next to us whom we took care of, because, of course, when you don`t speak Russian, it`s doubly hard. We were transferred from a Superjet to a Boeing 777-300, and it seemed several flights were merged. There was no panic; everyone tried to support and help each other.
To accommodate all passengers, Russian Railways (RZD) added extra seats on Sapsan trains for Sunday and Monday, and additional long-distance trains were scheduled between Moscow and St. Petersburg. Unlike Moscow, St. Petersburg has only one airport. Its alternative airfields are in Moscow and Arkhangelsk, explained Andrey Patrakov, founder of RunAvia.ru flight safety service. He elaborated on what passengers should do if forced to land elsewhere.
Andrey Patrakov, founder of RunAvia.ru flight safety service: «The aircraft will await the opening of the arrival airport, meaning Pulkovo, and will depart for the destination airport once the `Carpet` signal is lifted. If the wait is longer, passengers might be disembarked into the terminal. Food is provided, and theoretically, even a hotel might be offered if needed. But in practice, if the wait doesn`t exceed five hours, the airport usually reopens, and the plane completes the passenger transfer to the destination airport. Passengers can travel independently, but that`s decided on a case-by-case basis. As far
as I know, the car journey from Arkhangelsk to St. Petersburg takes over 12 hours. Consequently, the cost and time of such a trip would not be compensated. So, it`s at the passenger`s discretion.»
Due to Pulkovo`s inability to accept flights, the plane carrying presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov and Kremlin pool journalists was also delayed by two hours. They were meant to accompany President Vladimir Putin`s visit to St. Petersburg for Navy Day. The President congratulated participants of the «July Storm» exercises and visited the frigate «Admiral Grigorovich,» which participated in repelling the drone attack.
The main naval parade in St. Petersburg was canceled due to «general circumstances» and «security considerations.» Despite this, and unusually high temperatures of around 30 degrees Celsius, residents and tourists still ventured out to the embankments. Authorities did not impose alcohol sales restrictions, unlike during the «Scarlet Sails» festival. The city celebrated Navy Day without the grandeur of recent years, as noted by «Fontanka,» recalling that even before 2010, the holiday was observed without lavish ceremonies.
