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Is it safe to travel to Europe during the conflict between Russia and Ukraine?

2022-03-10T23:58:38.274Z


Here's what we know so far about traveling to Europe amid the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. This is how the airline industry will suffer from the war in Ukraine 1:20 (CNN) -- The Russian invasion of Ukraine has sparked travel disruptions around the world. The European Union closed all airspace across its 27 countries to Russian planes on Sunday, following a steady stream of airspace closure announcements by member states over the weekend. In response to the European Union ban, Russia


This is how the airline industry will suffer from the war in Ukraine 1:20

(CNN) --

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has sparked travel disruptions around the world.


The European Union closed all airspace across its 27 countries to Russian planes on Sunday, following a steady stream of airspace closure announcements by member states over the weekend.

In response to the European Union ban, Russia's Civil Aviation Authority announced Monday that it has closed its airspace to carriers from 36 countries.

The list also includes the United Kingdom and Canada, which have banned Russian planes.

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On Tuesday, President Joe Biden announced that the United States will follow suit and ban Russian planes from its airspace.

Switzerland also closed its airspace to Russia, and Russia has responded by banning planes from Switzerland.

Last week, Ukraine's airspace was closed following the Russian invasion.

Ukraine's neighbor Moldova also closed its airspace, as did parts of Belarus.

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The conflict could redraw the world aerial map.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told US pilots last week to avoid "the entire country of Ukraine, the entire country of Belarus, and the western part of Russia."

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency, known as EASA, has warned of a "high risk" for civil aircraft flying near the Ukrainian border.

Countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom have advised their citizens to leave Ukraine, and both the United States and the United Kingdom have advised against all travel to Ukraine and Russia.

Cruise companies have modified itineraries that included ports of call in Russia.

Here's what we know about the impact of post-conflict travel to Eastern Europe and Russia.

Can I still fly to Eastern Europe?

Air traffic continues to flow out of severely affected areas.

In addition to the border with Russia, Ukraine is also a neighbor of Belarus, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Moldova, as the map above illustrates.

EASA doubled the size of the alert zone around Ukraine on February 25, fearing "medium-range missiles will penetrate controlled airspace."

The zone was expanded from 100 to 200 nautical miles from the Ukrainian border with Russia.

EASA maintains that the enlarged area now considers the "risk posed by the threat of missile launches to and from Ukraine".

Moldova has closed its airspace, while Belarus has banned flights over part of the country.

All countries bordering Ukraine were already on the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) level 4 list of highest-risk destinations for covid-19.

The US government also discourages travel to Belarus and Moldova due to the conflict.

Gwen Kozlowski, a Florida-based travel consultant, Central European travel specialist and president of travel agency Exeter International, told CNN Travel on February 24 that her agency has received questions from travelers with upcoming trips to Poland.

"We have guests traveling at the end of March and beginning of April to Poland, but that is more than a month away. It is impossible to say now how it will evolve. We are basically in standby mode," Kozlowski said by email.

Przemysłlaw Marczewski, a representative of the Polish National Tourism Organization, told CNN Travel on February 25 that "travel to Poland is smooth, and the borders of the Republic of Poland with neighboring countries are not closed."

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Marczewski noted that the Polish land borders with Ukraine have been open to refugees and that the tourism sector is supporting Ukrainian citizens with temporary accommodation in hotels.

Tourists with short-term plans to visit Poland are advised to book accommodation in advance, "as part of the hotel infrastructure can go to the needy."

Hungarian tourism officials say the country is open to tourists.

"Hungary remains a safe country, and life continues as normal here," the Hungarian Tourism Agency said in a statement to CNN Travel.

"The Hungarian government is doing everything possible to prevent participation in the war, and to preserve the safety of both the residents of Hungary and the tourists who visit it."

My flight must fly over Ukrainian airspace, will it be diverted?

Empty airspace over Ukraine around 11:30 a.m. ET on February 24.

(Photo: ADS-B Exchange)

If you fly on a route that would normally cross the currently blocked airspace, the airline will divert the flight.

Images from the ADS-B Exchange aircraft tracker on February 24 showed empty airspace over Ukraine and its border with Russia.

"For aviation, safety is always the top priority," Willie Walsh, director general of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), said in a statement provided to CNN Travel on February 24.

"IATA is helping to facilitate the relevant and timely exchange of information with airlines from government and non-government sources to support airlines in planning their operations around airspace closures in Ukraine and parts of Russia."

  • Image shows empty airspace over Ukraine and its border with Russia

Can I travel to Russia?

Countries like the UK and the US have issued travel warnings to Russia due to the ongoing conflict.

The US State Department issued a Level 4 Do Not Travel to Russia Warning in January and updated it on February 28 citing the "unprovoked and unwarranted attack by Russian military forces in Ukraine, the potential for harassment against US citizens by Russian government security officials, the embassy's limited ability to assist US citizens in Russia," as well as COVID-19 and other factors.

The UK updated its advisory to citizens on February 28, expanding the warning against traveling to certain parts of Russia to advise against travel to Russia at all.

Canadian citizens are advised to avoid non-essential travel to Russia due to the conflict, and to avoid all travel within 50 kilometers of the Ukrainian border.

Current flight and airspace restrictions also make travel to and from Russia difficult.

Russian airspace on the border with Ukraine is closed to civilian flights.

There are also some restrictions on domestic flights within Russia.

The airspace of the European Union is closed to Russian planes, as is that of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Switzerland.

"These aircraft will no longer be able to land, take off or fly over the territory of the European Union. This will apply to any aircraft," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen declared on February 28 about the ban on Russian airspace by of the European Union.

In response, Russian airspace is closed to at least 36 countries.

This is the airspace of Ukraine 0:40

Delta Air Lines has suspended its codeshare with the Russian national carrier Aeroflot.

For his part, the popular travel author Rick Steves, who organizes excursions, announced Thursday that he is canceling his trips to Russia for the rest of the year.

"Our mission (at Rick Steves' Europe) is to help Americans understand the world through travel," Steves tweeted.

"But when we bring travelers to Russia, we also bring their dollars, dollars that would support Putin's aggression. We have canceled all 2022 travel to Russia."

Norwegian Cruise Line says it will alter cruise itineraries that include St. Petersburg, Russia, due to the "escalation of the situation between Russia and Ukraine," according to a company statement.

A Norwegian spokesperson said the company is working to confirm the replacement ports and will notify affected travelers.

Carnival Corporation, with more than a half-dozen cruise brands, tweeted over the weekend that its brands would modify itineraries in response to the situation in Ukraine.

"We are for peace," the company said.

According to Cruise Critic, other cruise companies have also canceled their port calls in Russia and have modified their itineraries.

How long will travel be affected?

The situation in Ukraine is evolving rapidly.

It is unclear how long the airspace over Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus or Russia will be affected.

According to the UK government's travel advisory, restrictions on domestic flights in Russia will be in effect as of March 10.

Sharon Braithwaite, Pete Muntean, Antonia Mortensen, Ivana Kottasova, Anna Chernova, Vasco Cotovio, Jennifer Deaton, and Paula Newton contributed reporting.

Conflict Russia - Ukraine

Source: cnnespanol

All news articles on 2022-03-10

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