SWISS suspends flights to Ukraine
Amid further escalations of the crisis in Ukraine, Swiss International Air Lines has decided to temporarily suspend flights to Ukraine from next week. This affects flight connections in Kyiv.
All flights will be cancelled from Monday February 21 until February 28, a SWISS spokesperson told the Keystone-SDA news agency on Saturday in response to a request. Flights on Sunday, February 20, would take place as planned to provide booked passengers a travel option between Kyiv and Zurich.
“The safety of passengers and crew members is the top priority at all times,” the spokesperson said. The airline, which is part of the Lufthansa Group, said it is continuing to monitor the situation closely and is in communication with the authorities. Affected passengers will be informed.
The other airlines in the Lufthansa Group also announced Saturday that they would suspend flights to Ukraine starting next week. This includes Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings. Other European airlines have made similar announcements in recent days.
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Switzerland orders relatives of Kyiv embassy staff to return home
Russian troop deployment in the border region with Ukraine has heightened fears of a Russian invasion. In addition, tensions in the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine increased significantly in recent days. On Saturday, Russia also undertook nuclear deterrence exercises.
On February 14, the Swiss embassy in Kyiv said that it was staying open despite threats of Russian invasion but told families of embassy staff to return home.
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