VIENNA, May 27. /TASS/. Russia’s aviation authorities did not allow Austrian Airlines to use an alternative route bypassing Belarus for a Thursday scheduled flight from Vienna to Moscow, a representative of the Austrian air carrier told TASS.
"Austrian Airlines has suspended flights over Belarusian airspace until further notice based on the recommendation from the EU Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). For this reason, it is also necessary to adjust the flight route from Vienna to Moscow. The change in the flight path must be approved by the authorities. Russian officials did not give their approval to us. As a result, Austrian Airlines was forced to cancel today's flight from Vienna to Moscow," the official said responding to a request to comment on Thursday's cancellation of a morning flight from Vienna to Moscow.
On May 25, Austrian Airlines told TASS that the air carrier decided to suspend flights through Belarusian airspace and circumvent Belarus in connection with the EU’s decision in the wake of the forced landing of a Ryanair plane in Minsk on May 23. The flight from Vienna to Moscow, scheduled for May 27, was not supposed to fly over Belarus.
On May 26, the Austrian Ministry of Transport told TASS that the EASA issued a security information bulletin in which European airlines are advised to avoid Belarusian airspace.