Turkmen airline suspends Moscow flights over safety concerns

Turkmenistan’s flagship airline has suspended flights to Moscow, it said on Wednesday, citing safety concerns after Ukrainian drone attacks on the Russian capital.

“Due to the situation in the Moscow air zone, and based on a risk assessment in order to ensure flight safety, all Turkmenistan Airlines flights on the Ashgabat-Moscow-Ashgabat route will be suspended,” the airline said in a statement.

Turkmenistan Airlines said it would now fly instead to Kazan, which is more than 700 km (440 miles) east of Moscow.

Russia says it has shot down Ukrainian drones near and over Moscow in the past few days, though there are no reports of anybody being hurt. A high-rise building in Moscow’s business district that houses three Russian government ministries was struck by a drone on Tuesday for the second time in three days.

Ukraine has drawn satisfaction from the attacks, though without directly claiming responsibility for them.

The drone attacks prompted Vnukovo, one of Moscow’s airports, to close briefly but it later resumed full operations.