How a Turkish air discounter crashed due to EU sanctions (VIDEO)

EU authorities have closed airspace over EU countries to Turkey-based Southwind Airlines. The basis for this was the conclusions of the Finnish aviation authorities, who came to the conclusion that actual control over Southwind is exercised from Russia. Flights over EU territory have been closed for Russian airlines since February 27, 2022, due to the large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine that began a few days earlier.

The ban on the airline based in the Turkish city of Antalya became known from information from the Turkish publication Turizm Guncel, and it was also confirmed by the Russian association of tour operators ATOR.

“Our overall assessment shows that a significant share of ownership and effective control do not belong to Turkish individuals or companies. We have come to the conclusion that the airline and control over it are associated with Russian players,” the Turkish publication quotes the head of the Finnish transport agency Traficom, Jarkko Saarimäki.

Finland refused to allow Southwind to fly to its territory on March 25th. And on March 28, as Turizm Guncel writes, the EU officially informed all countries of the union that Southwind Airlines, in accordance with the sanctions regulations, was prohibited from flying over EU territory.

Because of this, as reported by ATOR, Russian tourists were unable to fly from Sharm El-Sheikh (Egypt) to Moscow on time. They were supposed to fly on Air Cairo, but it is alleged that EU authorities may have considered it affiliated with Southwind. As a result, the tourists were taken out with an 11-hour delay; the flight took place over the Black Sea, Georgia, the Caspian Sea and Kazakhstan, that is, bypassing EU territory.

The Association of Tour Operators of Russia also announced the cancellation of Southwind flights from Antalya to Kaliningrad. Flights from Egypt to Moscow will allegedly continue, although they will take longer.

Southwind Airlines was founded in 2022, shortly following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Its headquarters are located in Antalya. The German tabloid Bild writes that all three of the carrier’s aircraft were received from the Russian airline Nordwind. The company operated flights from Turkey to Russia, as well as Germany, Switzerland, Greece, and North Macedonia. As European Pravda notes, the ban on flights within the EU will make flights to Switzerland, as well as North Macedonia, impossible.