RUSSIA WARNS AIRLINES AGAINST USING "DANGEROUS" AIRSPACE OVER GEORGIA

Itar-Tass
Aug 28 2008
Russia

Moscow, 28 August: Georgia’s airspace is currently especially dangerous
for civilian aircraft flights, the head of the Federal Air Traffic
Control Service [Rosaeronavigatsiya], Aleksandr Neradko, has said
today, as quoted by the press service of the Ministry of Transport.

For example, on 28 August 2008 the Belarusian airline company Belavia’s
B-737 plane on a regular BRU-1735 flight from Minsk to Tbilisi, which
was following the international route P11, on its approach to the
boundary between Russia’s and Georgia’s airspaces was unexpectedly
denied service in the previously agreed air corridor by Georgian air
traffic control bodies. The commander of the aircraft had to change
the route in order to complete the flight safely.

Earlier, on 25 August 2008, there was a similar incident with an Yak-42
plane of the Russian airline company Volgaaviaekspress on the VLG-303
flight from Volgograd to Yerevan through sections of international air
routes in the Georgian airspace. Despite the fact that the Georgian
side had approved the flight route through the border-crossing Gusli
corridor, Georgian air traffic control bodies refused to service the
said flight without explanation when the plane approached the area
of responsibility of the Georgian air traffic service. The Russian
aircraft’s crew had to change the route and use air routes bypassing
Georgia.

So far, the aviation authorities of Georgia have not provided
explanations for refusal to service civilian aircraft following the
established international air routes over its territory. The Georgian
side has not been responding to special requests from Russian air
traffic control bodies, Rosaeronavigatsiya stressed.

In connection with the incidents, the Federal Air Traffic
Control Service again strongly recommends that Russian airlines
not use Georgia’s airspace for their flights and use alternative
routes. Initially this recommendation was given to Russian airlines
on 8 August.