- 1 When will air traffic in Ukraine be restored?
- 2 Under what conditions can flights be resumed?
- 3 Why might air traffic in Ukraine not start immediately even after the war ends?
- 4 Are airports operating despite martial law?
- 5 How does air travel work in other countries during wartime?
- 1 When will air traffic in Ukraine be restored?
- 2 Under what conditions can flights be resumed?
- 3 Why might air traffic in Ukraine not start immediately even after the war ends?
- 4 Are airports operating despite martial law?
- 5 How does air travel work in other countries during wartime?
Wizz Air recently launched an advertising campaign to recruit employees in Ukraine. Although Ukrainian airspace remains closed due to martial law, the initiative has sparked discussions about the possible resumption of civil flights.
The thing is, this topic has been discussed for a long time. For example, last year, the director of Lviv Airport, Tetyana Romanovska, even voiced possible scenarios for opening the airspace. However, no further concrete decisions were made.
24 Channel found out when Ukraine's airspace could be opened for airlines, what risks still exist for civil flights, and why Ukraine cannot repeat Israel's experience with civil flights.
When will air traffic in Ukraine be restored?
Minister of Community and Territorial Development Oleksiy Kuleba explained to Channel 24 that while martial law continues, there is no talk of opening airspace in Ukraine.
Resumption of flights is possible only if full safety of civil aviation is guaranteed. Today, the key factor remains the security situation, which does not allow considering the opening of airspace as a near-term prospect,
– the comment says.
Despite this, the ministry is already preparing for the future resumption of air traffic, in particular, a special working group has been created with the participation of representatives of airports, airlines, and relevant bodies in order to develop practical solutions and a plan for the resumption of flights.
The work of this group will consist of assessing the state of the infrastructure, formulating security requirements, and coordinating between all participants in the process.
Please note! Upon request from Channel 24, the Lviv Danylo Halytskyi Airport reported that they are currently not commenting on the issue of resuming air services to Ukraine due to its sensitivity.
Aviation expert Bohdan Dolintse, in a conversation with Channel 24, explains that the creation of such a group, like all the others that have been created since 2022, does not mean that Ukraine's airspace will be open in the near future or even in the medium term.
Bohdan Dolintse,
aviation expert, member of the Public Council of the State Aviation Service
Therefore, we will be able to get the answer to the question of whether air transportation can be resumed under martial law after the completion of the work of this group, if, of course, they are made public.
- Even earlier, the Ministry of Infrastructure created relevant groups and certain steps were still taken, but this did not lead to the complete or even partial opening of airspace.
- In addition, this instrument is only an advisory body, and therefore, in principle, cannot perform any functions other than conducting assessments and providing recommendations to ministries or ministers.
In addition, the Ukrainian airline SkyUp, upon request from Channel 24, explained that the opening of any Ukrainian airport is a complex and multi-level process that requires coordination between security, regulatory, and operational aspects.
This is primarily due to the current security environment: the capabilities of Russian missiles and drones cover the entire territory of Ukraine, which makes the risks systemic, not local. In these conditions, security remains an absolute priority for SkyUp,
– the company says.
At the same time, SkyUp adds that opening airspace is not exclusively an operational decision of airlines or airports, but requires a consolidated position of all market participants.
Under what conditions can flights be resumed?
SkyUp Airlines explains that the condition for resuming flights is the willingness of insurance companies to cover the relevant risks, as well as the availability of approval from lessors for the use of aircraft in such an environment.
- Therefore, due to the fact that all commercial transportation is subject to mandatory insurance, the lack of insurance coverage actually makes it impossible to operate flights.
- In addition, even with the necessary safety and regulatory prerequisites in place, airports need time to prepare for the resumption of operations: from checking infrastructure and equipment to restoring operational processes and staffing.
This is an integral part of the process and cannot be implemented instantly. Thus, the key issue today goes beyond the technical readiness of the infrastructure or airlines to start flights,
– the airline emphasizes.
It is about responsibility and guarantees, including who and how can provide reliable, effective and long-term safety guarantees for all parties: passengers, airlines, insurers and lessors during the active phase of the war.
Accordingly, without systemic security solutions and clear international guarantees, the opening of airports in the near future seems unlikely.
Why might air traffic in Ukraine not start immediately even after the war ends?
Interestingly, according to expert Bohdan Dolinets, even after the end of the war in Ukraine, the opening of airspace is not a quick process.
This is due not only to the readiness of airports, which state that they, in principle, can restore the ability to receive aircraft, including from airlines, within 1-3 months. In order not to simply carry out 1 advertising flight, but to really start operating regular flights, it is necessary to open the sale of air tickets at least 3-6 months in advance,
– summarizes Mr. Bogdan.
Otherwise, companies will have no one to transport, and the cost of such flights will be disproportionately expensive and economically inexpedient.
Therefore, even before the opening of airspace, at least 3 months in advance, ticket resale will become noticeable. And this will be the first and main signal that the “air gates” in Ukraine may open.
Are airports open despite martial law?
As is known, the topic of resuming the work of international airports was actively discussed during 2025. In general, Lviv was called one of the main candidates among the cities where airspace for civilian aircraft could be opened, in particular, the Danylo Halytskyi Lviv Airport.
- The management of Lviv Airport stated that they would like the airport to open in the summer, since the main air traffic falls on the holiday period. But if it could happen in April or May, that would also be extremely good, Tetyana Romanovska, the general director of the airport, told Vysoky Zamok.
- Moreover, according to her, several international airlines – including Wizz Air, Lufthansa, LOT, and Turkish Airlines – even announced their readiness to return to the Ukrainian market after the opening of the skies. However, in the end, no real decisions on opening the skies were made.
Despite the fact that Ukrainian airports have not been fully operational for 4 years, the work of aviation enterprises continues, albeit not in the usual format. As Mr. Bohdan explains, any aviation enterprise cannot simply close down and dismiss all employees.
There is infrastructure that requires maintenance, repair, operation, preservation, and certain technical routine work. Without this, it will begin to lose its value, and in addition, some equipment will be impossible to restore after this,
– emphasizes the aviation expert.
An important factor in this is maintaining the qualifications of the staff. If the staff does not perform their professional tasks for 6 months or more, they lose the corresponding certificate.
- And if this happens, the company will not be able to pass the relevant certification checks by the state regulator and will lose its aerodrome operator certificate, that is, it will actually cease to exist as a subject of aviation activity.
- Therefore, all enterprises must, in one way or another, comply with the requirements: conduct ongoing personnel training, maintain infrastructure, conduct periodic inspections, and confirm their status as an aviation enterprise.
Currently, some aviation entities in Ukraine have had their aviation entity certificates suspended and later returned over the past 4 years. While some continue to maintain them all these years.
How does air travel work in other countries during wartime?
If we talk about air transportation in conditions of military risks, there are already many such examples in the world. It is not only about Israel, notes Dolintse. Therefore, the experience of the Persian Gulf countries, where military risks are currently quite high, shows several key factors:
- The first key factor is the ability of forces and means to ensure the security and protection of airspace.
- The second factor is an assessment of the means by which attacks can be carried out, that is, an assessment of the weapons that the country possesses that could pose a threat to national airspace.
- The third factor is that there is a clear mechanism for actual aviation insurance, which is actually one of the key factors.
In particular, according to an analysis by The Wall Street Journal, airlines in the UAE are still operating flights, despite massive drone and missile attacks. It is currently known that UAE companies such as Emirates, Etihad, Flydubai and Air Arabia operate the majority of flights.
The authorities of the countries resort to minimizing risks, such as creating special air corridors or escorting military aircraft with civilian aircraft.
Today, in Ukraine, there is no mechanism for providing aviation insurance to allow for at least partial or full reopening of flights, which in principle makes any civil air transportation impossible.
– adds Dolintse.
In contrast, in Israel, back in the 1960s and 1970s, a special mechanism was developed at the state level that allowed for so-called reinsurance. This means that the country assumed some of the risks, which allowed it to launch certain air transportation services even taking into account the existing risks.
Moreover, air transport is critical for Israel, and planes are a de facto strategic mode of transport. Any other mode of transport is either too long or impossible.
Israel has virtually no access to friendly partner countries, meaning the country is surrounded by other countries with which it has difficult relations. Even sea transport is quite dangerous.
On the other hand, air transport is not so urgently needed for Ukraine, because we have a sufficiently long border with partner countries.