Ukraine has once again issued a notification declaring some areas in airspace over the Black Sea near the Crimean Peninsula as hazardous, according to the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency, or Rosaviatsiya.
“The new danger zones have been declared in airspace over neutral waters of the Black Sea and partially over the Russian Federation’s territorial waters in the Black Sea southwest and southeast of the Crimean Peninsula. The notices, filed to alert aircraft pilots of potential hazards, do not provide the reason for declaring the new danger zones,” the statement says.
Hence, “Ukraine has made one more unexplainable attempt to intrude into Russia’s sovereign airspace, this time around by six to ten nautical miles (from 11 to 18 kilometers) from the side of neutral waters,” it said.
“All danger zones declared by Ukraine, both over neutral and territorial waters, are located in the so-called Simferopol flight information region (Simferopol FIR), which is a limited airspace segment over the Black Sea and in which air traffic is managed by air traffic controllers from the Russian aeronautical provider, the state corporation for the organization of airspace in the Russian Federation,” it said.
“Once again, in violation of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) requirements, Ukraine has not coordinated its actions on declaring danger zones over neutral waters with the state corporation for the organization of airspace in the Russian Federation,” it said.
Rosaviatsiya vowed that nothing threatens flights over Crimea and that the airspace over the peninsula will not be closed. It guaranteed safety of Russian airlines’ flights between Simferopol and other Russian cities.
On December 25, Ukraine declared some segments in airspace over the Black Sea west of the Crimean Peninsula, including six nautical miles (12 kilometers) into Russia’s territorial waters, a zone of missile firing exercises.
