Suspension of passenger services takes effect Thursday
UAE-based airlines have temporarily stopped operations in Ukraine after tensions in eastern Europe escalated further.
Forces from Russia started firing missiles at several cities in Ukraine on Thursday, just days after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops into the eastern part of the country.
"Putin has just launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine," the country's foreign minister, Dymytro Kuleba said on Twitter.
Among those affected by the Russia-Ukraine crisis are services operated by flydubai, Air Arabia, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi and Etihad Airways. Long-haul operator Emirates Airline does not fly to Ukraine.
In a statement sent to Zawya, flydubai said it has decided to halt passenger services to Ukraine until March 8.
"Flydubai flights between Dubai and Ukraine have been temporarily suspended until March 8. We will be in touch with our passengers regarding their refund and rebooking options," a spokesperson said.
The low-cost airline operates flights between Dubai and two Ukrainian destinations, the capital Kyiv (Kiev) and port city of Odessa.
Sharjah-based carrier Air Arabia has also temporarily stopped its passenger services to the Eastern European state until further notice.
"Given the current situation and due to airspace closure, Air Arabia will temporarily suspend its flights between Sharjah and Ukraine until further notice. We regret the inconvenience caused to our customers," a spokesperson said.
Although it doesn't fly direct to Ukraine, Etihad Airways said some of its services have been impacted as well. The Abu Dhabi-based airline, which has been avoiding the Ukrainian airspace, said it has re-routed some of its flights from the border region to the east and north of Ukraine by a "considerable distance," as a precautionary measure.
"As a result, this morning's flight to Moscow has been delayed while an updated flight plan is approved. The safety and wellbeing of our guests is always Etihad's highest priority," the airline said.
Another budget carrier, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi, confirmed that it has decided to cancel flight operations from Abu Dhabi to Kyiv and Moscow on Thursday and Krasnodar on Friday.
"Due to the current situation in Ukraine and the airspace closures in Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi regrets to inform all customers that the airline had to cancel its flight operations from Abu Dhabi to Kyiv and Moscow on Thursday 24th February and Krasnodar on Friday 25th February," the airline said in a statement to Zawya.
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