Due to drone attacks, Moscow airports faced multiple daily closures over the weekend. More than 300 flights were canceled across the capital, leaving approximately three thousand passengers in the Far East unable to travel to Moscow.
Moscow`s airports are striving to normalize operations after a chaotic weekend during which they frequently closed due to drone attacks. Aeroflot has reported ongoing flight changes and cancellations, and its ticket counters at Sheremetyevo Airport are temporarily not processing refunds or rebookings.
Passengers at Sheremetyevo have shared images of overcrowded waiting areas, with many spending the night at the airport, improvising beds from luggage and coats. One passenger told the E1 portal, «People are sleeping on staircases and the floor, wherever they can find space.» Sheremetyevo`s administration stated that flights are proceeding as possible and in order of priority, warning that passenger service times may be extended. For example, Maxim, who was scheduled to fly to Tyumen at 00:35, eventually departed around 7 AM.
«My flight was scheduled for 00:35 from Sheremetyevo to Tyumen. I arrived three hours early, expecting a couple of hours` delay, but certainly not an overnight one. At 2 AM, the flight was rescheduled to 5 AM. By then, drinks and complimentary meals became available. There were water fountains, so you could easily refill an empty bottle. I decided to explore the free meal option. My boarding pass had a 650 ruble allowance, so I challenged myself to visit all locations listed on Aeroflot’s website where I could use it. It turned out only two places offered a full meal for 650 rubles; elsewhere, it was just a discount, requiring additional payment, as the average cost of a dish was 800-1000 rubles. We finally took off closer to 7 AM.»
Valeriya Zhnova, who flew from Sheremetyevo to Sharm El Sheikh on Sunday night with a foreign airline, indicated that her terminal (Terminal C) did not experience the same level of chaos:
«Our boarding was supposed to finish at 2:05 AM, with a flight at 2:25 AM. We weren`t informed about the delay for a long time, and people were queuing and getting agitated. Not panic, but growing discontent. Around 3 AM, we were told boarding would start soon, and the flight was moved to 3:30 AM, so we eventually departed after 3 AM. Compared to another flight to Sharm El Sheikh operated by Aeroflot, which faced a substantial delay with passengers expected to depart at 5 AM, we were lucky.»
Pavel, another passenger at Sheremetyevo on Monday evening, described the situation:
«The atmosphere is generally normal and calm. I wouldn`t say there are too many people, certainly not significantly more than usual. Overall, information dissemination is good; SMS notifications about delays arrived promptly. Organizational measures to alleviate the airport`s burden are, in my opinion, moderately successful. While observing the display boards, I heard about flights being arranged for hotels, and how people with canceled flights were being informed and supported. I also heard requests for passengers with delays of three or more hours to approach the counter, presumably for water. So, the essential provisions were met.»
In total, over 300 flights were canceled at Moscow airports this weekend. In regional airports, many passengers are still awaiting departure to Moscow. Nine flights to the capital are delayed from Vladivostok, Khabarovsk, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, and Sakhalin, affecting approximately three thousand passengers. Sergey Nabivachev, a special correspondent for Rossiyskaya Gazeta in Blagoveshchensk, provided further details:
«The Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor`s Office announced that 2,700 passengers in four Far Eastern airports cannot fly to Moscow. This refers to airports in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Vladivostok, and Khabarovsk. Moscow flights are also delayed from Blagoveshchensk and Yakutsk. Currently, some flights have departed; for instance, the Blagoveshchensk flight departed, albeit several hours late. The number of delayed passengers is likely higher than 2,700, perhaps three thousand or even more, but this has probably not led to a complete collapse in the mentioned airports, as most of these terminals are relatively new, recently constructed.»
Valeriya Fedorenko, a journalist from Vladivostok, shared insights on the situation in Far Eastern airports:
«The worse flights arrive at Far Eastern airports, the worse they depart from them. According to the Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor`s Office, about three thousand people are currently stranded, with nine flights from Far Eastern airports — Vladivostok, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk — delayed indefinitely. Airport and airline staff cannot provide concrete information because they don`t know when attacks will cease, when incoming flights will arrive, or in what order flights will be released from Far Eastern airports. It`s especially difficult for those with transit or connecting flights, who lose expensive tickets to other countries or whose important plans are disrupted – they receive no answers. Passengers are mostly waiting in terminal buildings, where they can seek information from transport prosecutors. The Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor`s Office has organized mobile receptions for citizens, but this doesn`t alleviate their situation, as most do not receive full refunds for canceled tickets. The airport in Vladivostok is outside the city, and many from other Primorsky Krai cities have nowhere else to go but wait at the airport, where there is indeed a crowd, judging by video footage. Some might be accommodated in hotels, but there aren`t enough hotels for everyone.»
Over the weekend, Moscow and some regional airports repeatedly activated the «Carpet» plan, which temporarily suspends all flights. Flights between St. Petersburg and Moscow were also interrupted. In less than two days, 134 aircraft were diverted to alternate airfields. Amidst the mass delays, a conflict arose at Sheremetyevo on Sunday when Pobeda Airlines passengers, whose flight from Moscow to Minvody was scheduled for Saturday evening, blocked the departure of a similar Sunday flight. They demanded explanations from airline representatives as to why they weren`t flying. They eventually departed, but after a 20-hour delay.
Many are now wondering how to plan complex multi-leg journeys, for example, from Moscow to Europe, without fear that Moscow delays will disrupt the entire travel chain. Aviation expert and chief editor of FrequentFlyers.ru, Ilya Shatilin, offers advice:
«You could try flying from St. Petersburg, getting there by train or car. However, St. Petersburg has also experienced several `Carpet` plans recently. Since St. Petersburg serves as an alternate airfield for Moscow airports, many flights are diverted there, causing similar disruptions and delays. A second option is international flights from Sochi, for instance, to Istanbul, which is a major hub for worldwide travel. The problem is that this is quite expensive. Therefore, the best option is to buy a ticket with a Russian airline to Istanbul or Yerevan, or another city from which you`ll fly further. Then, you buy a ticket with a foreign airline and allow one or two days between these flights, during which you can enjoy local delicacies like balik, ekmek, dondurma, kebabs, and take boat trips on the Bosphorus. This gives you a significant time buffer, so even if you depart a day or two later, you can still calmly continue your vacation.»
In response to the air hub restrictions, the Moscow Transport Prosecutor`s Office initiated checks to ensure passenger rights are upheld. Rosaviatsia is not yet considering providing aid or compensation to airlines for delays and cancellations, stated its head, Dmitry Yadrov.
Oleg Panteleev, Executive Director of Aviaport agency, commented on why the state is not yet addressing compensation for carriers and whether it will do so:
«Airlines face very serious costs when airspace restrictions are introduced. This problem most significantly impacts network carriers, whose connections are disrupted, leading to billions in losses for airlines. However, it`s difficult to accurately assess the scale of economic problems today. Yet, in both 2023 and 2024, airlines achieved strong financial results, with the industry as a whole earning substantial net profits, amounting to tens of billions of rubles. This allows the state to adopt a wait-and-see approach. As long as the financial stability of the industry overall, and individual airlines, does not raise serious doubts, the government will likely not assist air carriers. If the situation worsens and airlines` financial results in 2025 are significantly poorer than the previous year, that would be a serious signal to develop mechanisms to protect airlines.»
Journalists asked Russia`s new Minister of Transport, Andrey Nikitin, whether it`s possible to minimize flight delays when the «Carpet» plan is implemented. He replied that airports cannot make predictions but merely execute military orders. However, he noted they are currently handling the situation better than they did in May.
