Moscow airports experienced repeated closures over the weekend due to drone attacks, leading to over 300 cancelled flights in the capital. This disruption has also stranded approximately three thousand passengers in Russia`s Far East, unable to depart for Moscow.
Updated at 5:12 PM
Moscow`s airports are striving to resume normal operations after the weekend`s chaos, marked by multiple daily closures due to drone attacks. Aeroflot has indicated ongoing flight postponements and cancellations. Ticket offices at Sheremetyevo Airport are temporarily not processing refunds or rebookings.
Footage from passengers at Sheremetyevo shows overcrowded waiting areas, with many spending the night at the airport, improvising beds from luggage and coats. One passenger told the E1 portal that “people are sleeping on stairs and floors, wherever they can find a spot.” Sheremetyevo`s administration stated that flights are operating as much as possible and in sequence, warning of extended service times. One passenger, Maxim, whose flight to Tyumen was scheduled for 00:35, eventually departed around 7 AM.
“My flight from Sheremetyevo to Tyumen was scheduled for 00:35. I arrived at the airport three hours early, prepared for a couple of hours` delay, but certainly not an all-night one. At 2 AM, the flight was postponed to 5 AM. By then, drinks and free food were available. There were water fountains inside the airport, so you could easily refill an empty bottle. I decided to try the free food. My boarding pass had a specific amount – 650 rubles – and I challenged myself to visit all the places listed on Aeroflot`s website where you could pay with the boarding pass and that money. It turned out only two places from the entire list actually allowed you to get a full meal for 650 rubles. At other places, you`d only get a discount and have to pay extra, as the average cost of a meal at the airport is between 800 and 1000 rubles. We finally took off closer to 7 AM.”
Valeria Zhinova, who flew from Sheremetyevo to Sharm El Sheikh with a foreign airline that night, described her experience from Terminal C as relatively smooth, despite a delay:
“Our boarding was supposed to finish at 2:05 AM, and the flight depart at 2:25 AM. They didn`t inform us about the delay for a long time; 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 rescheduled for 3:30 AM, so we eventually departed after 3 AM. Compared to another Aeroflot flight also to Sharm El Sheikh, we were lucky, as theirs experienced a significant delay, with passengers expected to depart at 5 AM.”
Pavel, another passenger, reported on the situation at Sheremetyevo on Monday evening to Business FM:
“The general atmosphere is normal, calm. I wouldn`t say there are significantly more people than usual. Information flow is generally good; I received a timely SMS notification about the delay. Organizational measures to reduce the overall load on the airport are, in my opinion, moderately successful. I saw on the departure board how flights to hotels were being arranged, and how people with cancelled flights were being informed and supported. I heard announcements asking passengers on flights delayed by three hours or more to approach a counter, presumably for water. So, the minimum necessary provisions seem to be met.”
Nationwide Impact and Regional Delays
Over 300 flights were cancelled at Moscow airports this past weekend. In regional airports, passengers are still awaiting flights to Moscow. Nine flights to the capital from Vladivostok, Khabarovsk, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, and Sakhalin have been delayed, affecting approximately three thousand passengers. Sergey Nabivachev, special correspondent for Rossiyskaya Gazeta in Blagoveshchensk, elaborates:
Sergey Nabivachev Special Correspondent, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Blagoveshchensk
“The Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor`s Office reported that 2,700 passengers in four Far Eastern airports are unable to fly to Moscow. This refers to the airports in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Vladivostok, and Khabarovsk. Moscow-bound flights are also delayed at Blagoveshchensk and Yakutsk airports. Currently, some of these flights have departed; for example, a flight from Blagoveshchensk left, albeit with a delay of several hours. Most likely, the number of delayed passengers is higher than 2,700, perhaps three thousand or even more, but this has probably not led to a complete collapse at the aforementioned airports because most of these terminals are relatively new, recently built.”
Valeria Fedorenko, a journalist from Vladivostok, provided further insight into the situation at Far Eastern airports to Business FM:
Valeria Fedorenko Journalist from Vladivostok
“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 any specific information, as they don`t know when the attacks will cease, when flights will arrive, or in what order they will be dispatched from the Far Eastern airports. Of course, those with transit or connecting flights suffer the most, as their expensive international tickets are lost and important plans are disrupted; they simply cannot get answers. Generally, people are waiting mainly in the airport buildings, where they can seek information from transport prosecutors. The Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor`s Office has organized mobile receptions for citizens, but this does not alleviate their difficulties, as most do not receive full refunds for cancelled tickets. The Vladivostok airport is located outside the city, and many from other parts of Primorsky Krai have nowhere else to go and are waiting at the airport; indeed, there is congestion, judging by video recordings. Some might be accommodated in hotels, but there won`t be enough hotels for everyone.”
Security Measures and Passenger Conflicts
Over the weekend, Moscow and some regional airports repeatedly activated the “Carpet” plan (a security protocol for airspace closure). Flights between St. Petersburg and Moscow were interrupted. In less than two days, 134 aircraft were diverted to alternate airfields. RIA Novosti reported a conflict at Sheremetyevo on Sunday amidst the widespread delays: passengers of Pobeda airline, who were scheduled to fly from Moscow to Mineralnye Vody on Saturday evening, blocked the departure of a similar Sunday flight. They demanded an explanation from the airline representatives as to why their flight hadn`t departed. Ultimately, they flew, but after a 20-hour delay.
Expert Advice on Future Travel
Many are wondering how to plan complex multi-leg journeys, for example, from Moscow to Europe, without fear that delays in Moscow could disrupt the entire travel chain. Aviation expert and editor-in-chief of FrequentFlyers.ru, Ilya Shatilin, offers insights:
Ilya Shatilin Aviation Expert, Editor-in-Chief of FrequentFlyers.ru
“You could try flying from St. Petersburg; you`d get there by train or car, etc. But St. Petersburg has also seen several `Carpet` plans recently. Since St. Petersburg serves as a backup airfield for Moscow airports, many flights are diverted there, leading to similar chaos and affecting flights from St. Petersburg. Another option is international flights from Sochi, for instance, to Istanbul, which is a major hub for worldwide travel. The problem is that it`s quite expensive. So, the best option is to buy a Russian airline ticket to Istanbul or Yerevan, or another city from which you`ll fly further. There, you buy a ticket from a foreign airline, and between these flights, you allow for, say, one or two days, during which you can enjoy local delicacies like balik, ekmek, dondurma, kebabs, and other delicious things, or take boat trips on the Bosphorus. In this scenario, you create a significant time buffer, so even if you depart a day or two later, you can still calmly continue your holiday.”
Official Response and Compensation Outlook
In response to the restrictions at Moscow`s air hub airports, the Moscow Transport Prosecutor`s Office has launched investigations into ensuring passenger rights. According to Dmitry Yadrov, head of the Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsia), the agency is not currently considering aid or compensation for airline losses due to flight delays and cancellations.
Oleg Panteleev, Executive Director of AviaPort agency, discusses why the state is not currently addressing airline compensation and whether it will do so:
Oleg Panteleev Executive Director, AviaPort Agency
“Airlines face very serious costs when airspace restrictions are introduced. This issue most severely impacts network carriers, whose connections are disrupted, ultimately leading to billions of rubles in losses for airlines. However, it`s difficult to accurately assess the scale of economic problems today. Nevertheless, in both 2023 and 2024, airlines concluded with strong financial results; the industry as a whole achieved substantial net profits, amounting to tens of billions of rubles. This allows the government to take a `wait-and-see` approach—meaning that 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 deteriorates and airlines` financial results in 2025 are significantly worse than the previous year, that would be a serious signal to develop mechanisms to protect airlines.”
When asked whether flight delays could be minimized under the “Carpet” plan, Russia`s new Minister of Transport, Andrey Nikitin, stated that airports cannot make predictions and merely execute military orders. However, he noted that airports are now handling the situation better than they did in May.
Rupert Blackwood 
Clement Ashworth