According to a ministry statement published on October 30, the Communities and Territories Development Ministry in Warsaw presented a roadmap that would allow Ukraine’s airspace to be partially opened. The airspace had been closed during the full-scale invasion.
Ukraine’s airspace is closed to all flights since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022. This is due to the risk that Russian attacks could occur. The Ukrainian government has nevertheless looked for ways to restore industry during the war.
Serhii derkach, Deputy Communities and Territories Minister, presented a step-bystep plan for the partial reopening airspace during a conference held in Warsaw.
The meeting also covered risk assessments for civil aviation as well as the peculiarities of ensuring safety in air navigation, the readiness of Ukraine’s airports to resume operations and mechanisms for coordination between civil and military aviation.
The ministry did say which airports will open under the plan. The Kyiv independent reported earlier in March that the country was rumored be considering opening its airspace during wartime. This would include the western Lviv, Uzhhorod and Kyiv Boryspil Airports.
The roadmap was developed in collaboration with the U.S. Embassy, the State Aviation Service (Uksatse), Air Force Command and the heads of international airports in Ukraine including Boryspil, Lviv and Boryspil.
“This is the initial expert discussion which we hope will help us create the conditions for opening up the airspace.” Our strategic objective during the war is to preserve aviation infrastructure, and qualified personnel, so that, when the time comes we can resume civil flights as quickly as possible,” stated Oleksii Kulba, the Communities and Territories Development Minister.
Mary Elizabeth Madden (economic counselor at the U.S. embassy in Ukraine) stressed the importance of supporting Ukraine’s efforts to restore civil aircraft and the willingness of the U.S.
International airlines including LOT Polish Airlines and SkyUp Airlines as well as Turkish Airlines, WizzAir, Wizz Air and others also joined the discussion about opening airspace in Ukraine under martial law.
The European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation, (Eurocontrol), published a seven-year outlook on April 11, 2023. This included the possibility that restrictions over Ukrainian airspace would remain in place until the year 2029.
In 2023, the State Enterprise for Air Traffic Services stated that Ukrainian airspace would “reopen after war ends.”
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