MOSCOW, April 3. /TASS/. At least 75 airports will be upgraded in Russia in six years, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said speaking in the State Duma.

"In his address to the Federal Assembly, the President set a new task for the government to increase the aviation mobility of citizens. Over six years, at least 75 more airports will be upgraded," he said added that 250 billion rubles ($2.7 bln) will be allocated for these purposes.

Mishustin noted that last year alone, runways in nine cities including Pevek, Yakutsk, Blagoveshchensk, Arkhangelsk, and Magnitogorsk were repaired and put into operation.

"Russia needs strong and modern aviation with an extensive ground infrastructure. Therefore, we not only worked to revive the domestic aircraft industry, but also actively upgraded airfields in the regions," he said.

"People are already taking advantage of shorter and more convenient routes. For the first time, about 53% of domestic flights are made without a transfer in Moscow," Mishustin noted.

Earlier, Russian Transport Minister Vitaly Savelyev said that more than 100 of 228 airfields in Russia require repair and reconstruction. According to the minister, a special fund is now being created for the repair of airports. As the head of the Federal Air Transport Agency Dmitry Yadrov noted, more than 40 billion rubles ($434 mln) will be attracted to this fund by 2030.