Latvian authorities have extended the closure of the airspace over the country's borders with Russia and Belarus until the morning of September 19, a source from the country's air traffic control service told TASS.
This applies to flights at altitudes of up to 6 km. “Initially, the airspace over the border with Russia and Belarus was closed until the evening of Thursday, September 18, but now the restriction has been extended until 7:00 a.m. /Bulgarian time/ on Friday, September 19“, the source said.
Earlier, Latvian Defense Minister Andris Spruds noted that the authorities had decided to completely close the airspace up to a height of 6,000 meters in a 50-kilometer zone from the country's eastern border for a week, starting from September 11. It was noted that the decision was made on the recommendation of the Latvian National Armed Forces after a risk assessment. Spruds noted that although there is no direct threat to the Baltic republic, preventive measures are needed.
At the same time, as explained by air traffic control, the closure of airspace for flights at an altitude of up to 6 km on the borders of Latvia with Lithuania and Estonia has also been extended until the morning of September 19. A representative of the air traffic control service was unable to explain to TASS the reasons for this decision of the authorities in relation to these countries.
Meanwhile, an aviation source noted earlier that such a closure of airspace at the Latvian borders should not affect transit flights to third countries, since they "operate at much higher flight levels". Therefore, he emphasized, the restrictions should not affect the passage of aircraft en route to other countries through Latvian airspace.