MOSCOW, December 15. /TASS/. Krasnodar Airport has received its first test flight from Mineralnye Vody after a hiatus since February 2022, Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency said on Friday.

"Krasnodar International Airport on Friday, December 15, received a test flight by Azimuth Airlines on a Superjet 100 aircraft from Mineralnye Vody," the Federal Air Transport Agency said in a statement.

A working group on ensuring the safety of regular flights of civil aircraft to Krasnodar airport has planned the test flight without passengers, the agency also added.

"The test flight of the aircraft to the capital of the Krasnodar region will assess the readiness of air travel control rooms, airfield and special services to handle passenger flights at Krasnodar airport. To make a final decision, their work will be thoroughly analyzed," said Dmitry Yadorov, the Federal Air Transport Agency executive.

The day before, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Krasnodar airport could indeed be opened. Putin added that the airport was far from the combat zone.

Russia closed part of its airspace to civilian aircraft from February 24, 2022, in the southern and central parts of the country due to a special military operation in Ukraine. Flights to the airports of Anapa, Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Gelendzhik, Krasnodar, Kursk, Lipetsk, Rostov-on-Don, Simferopol and Elista are temporarily restricted.