Ukrainian drone attacks have caused major chaos for flights in Russia, with delays, rerouting and cancellations affecting at least 60,000 passengers, DPA reported, citing the Russian tourism association ATOR, BTA reports.
Moscow airports in particular have had problems ahead of planned celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
Forty flights have been canceled at Russia's largest airport, "Sheremetyevo", so far. Another 60 planes scheduled to land there have been diverted to airports hundreds of kilometers away, such as "Pulkovo" in St. Petersburg. At least 50 flights were delayed by an hour or more. 350 flights nationwide have been affected so far, ATOR said. The number of affected flights is expected to continue to rise. "There will be further flight disruptions due to the schedule. Planes that fail to arrive at their destinations on time will in turn delay subsequent flights," the association said in a statement. The Russian Defense Ministry said it had shot down 524 drones in a single day. The ministry made the statement amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which began more than three years ago. Russia, which continues to bomb the country daily, is preparing to mark the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany with a military parade on Friday.