MOSCOW, June 18. /TASS/. Flight cancellations at Moscow airports have preliminarily affected about 8,000 tourists who were due to depart abroad or return home, the press service of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR) reported.

"According to preliminary estimates, the situation has affected about 8,000 tourists who were scheduled to depart from Moscow for foreign destinations or return. Tour operators are reissuing tickets for clients whose flights were canceled. All cases involving tourists forced to remain abroad due to the cancellation or delay of flights from Russia are also under constant monitoring," the statement said.

Problems faced by tourists are being addressed on an individual basis. For those who have not yet left for the airport, efforts are being made, where possible, to extend their hotel stays. Passengers waiting for flights to Russia at foreign airports are entitled to receive meals from their carriers, ATOR explained.

According to information from Moscow airports, between 5:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., about 120 arriving and departing flights were canceled, while more than 160 were delayed by over two hours. Around 30 inbound flights were diverted to alternate airports, the experts recalled.