- Hong Kong flag carrier taking longer routes to Europe that stretch flight time by two to several hours
- Japan Airlines, ANA, Korean Air, Asiana and Singapore Airlines are just some of other carriers that have rerouted flights to avoid Russian airspace
- Korean Air has suspended all its routes to Russia until April as a safety measure
Cathay Pacific, the flag carrier of Hong Kong, has joined other major Asian airlines in taking longer routes that prolong journeys by several hours to avoid Russian airspace on their flights to Europe.
Cathay confirmed to RTHK and Reuters on March 17 its revised flight plans, becoming the latest Asian carrier to skirt Russian airspace to comply with international sanctions for its invasion of Ukraine.
Japan Airlines, ANA, Korean Air, Asiana and Singapore Airlines rerouted their flights shortly after Russia banned foreign aircraft from its skies in retaliation for a flight ban imposed by the United Kingdom, European Union, Canada and the United States on Russian flights over their airspace
“We regularly review our flight routings internally and also with information provided by external parties. We are currently not flying through Russian airspace,” RTHK quoted a statement from Cathay as saying in reply to an inquiry.
Tracking website FlightRadar24 showed flight CX255 to London Heathrow on Wednesday taking a different route over China, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Germany and the Netherlands, RTHK said.
The new route increased flight time by about two hours to around 14 hours and 30 minutes.
CX289 to Frankfurt that departed on March 17 also adopted the same route, although it was still flying through Russian airspace on March 13.
Korean Air, the flag carrier of South Korea, has suspended all its routes to Russia until April as a safety measure as Russia and Ukraine rages, news agency IANS reported.
These routes include passenger flights to the Russian capital Moscow and Vladivostok in the Far East.
Korean Air will also ground its cargo flights to Europe via Moscow until the end of April, Yonhap New Agency reported, citing a company statement.
The airline company said that it will re-route some of the routes to Europe and the US from Incheon in order to evade the Russian and Ukraine airspace.
As a result, Korean Air flights to Paris Amsterdam, Frankfurt, London, New York, Atlanta, Chicago, Washington, Boston and Toronto will take an additional three hours.
Rival Korean carriers Asiana Air and Air Busan have also halted air routes over Russia due to security concerns amid the Ukraine conflict.
The carriers will now fly over China, Kazakhstan and Turkey, impacting routes to Amsterdam, Frankfurt, New York, Atlanta, Chicago, Boston, London, Paris, Washington and Toronto, Dong-A Ilbo eported.
