On Wednesday, a Russian government jet flew nine hours between Moscow and Basel, Switzerland — a trip that takes about three hours without airspace restrictions, according to a Twitter post by flight-tracking website Flightradar24. The Russian-made Ilyushin Il-96-300 aircraft, which is used to fly government officials and the president, according to the Swiss news agency BZ, took off from Moscow at 10:27 am. and landed in Basel at 6:39 p.m. year. It’s 7:39 p.m. Moscow time. The plane flew over Russia, Georgia and Turkey before heading south over the Mediterranean Sea, avoiding Eastern European airspace. The aircraft then flew along the African coast before traveling north to Tunisia and eventually crossing France and Switzerland. Shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine in February, France and Switzerland closed their airspace to Russian aircraft as part of sanctions imposed to punish President Vladimir Putin. According to Flightradar24, the French and Swiss governments gave the plane special permission to fly over their airspace. That flight received “diplomatic clearance” from both France and Switzerland so it could pick up Russian diplomats representing the county at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, France, the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs told BZ. In March, the council, which protects human rights in Europe, voted unanimously to expel Russia from the organization after 26 years of membership. On the same day, the Russian government announced its withdrawal from the council. “Russia’s withdrawal from the Council of Europe means that even foreigners whose rights have been violated by the Kremlin cannot file a lawsuit against Russia,” Natalia Prilutskaya, a researcher at the International Amnesty with a focus on Russia. March. After the Russian crew members were recovered, the plane flew back to Moscow on another nine-hour journey, repeating its route. Return flight from Basel to Moscow. Courtesy of Flightradar24 This is not the first aircraft forced to fly a creative route due to airspace restrictions in Russia and the European Union. In February, shortly after the invasion, Russian airline Aeroflot flew three extra hours between Moscow and Belgrade, Serbia, because it could not fly over EU airspace. In March, Finnish carrier Finnair detoured over the North Pole when flying between Helsinki and Tokyo to avoid Russian airspace – adding four hours to the journey. Long detours are costly for airlines because they require more time and fuel, costing thousands of extra dollars, Robert Mann, an aviation consultant in New York, told ABC News in March.
