The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Monday called on airlines to exercise “extreme caution” when flying near the Ukraine-Russia border, citing potential risks to flight safety.
In a notification to US carriers on Saturday, the US agency said “escalating regional tensions between Russia and Ukraine could lead to cross-border fighting without warning, increased military activity and / or conflict.”
Since 2014, the FAA has banned US civil aviation operations in regions around the Ukraine-Russia border. The opinion also states that airlines must provide the FAA with at least 72 hours’ notice for scheduled flights in the region.
The FAA and other air regulators are concerned about the potential for a civilian plane to be shot down during a conflict because it has been misidentified.
In 2014, Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was shot down over eastern Ukraine by a rocket launched from the territory held by pro-Russian rebels during fighting with Ukrainian government troops, international investigators said. All 298 people on board were killed, two-thirds of whom were Dutch citizens.
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