Ukraine is preparing to open airspace for civilian aircraft, – French minister
French Transport Minister Clement Bon said that Ukraine is “working hard” to open its airspace to civilian aircraft.
He said this when speaking about cooperation with Ukraine in the field of training Ukrainian civil aviation pilots and air traffic controllers, reports European Pravda.
As Bon clarified in an interview with the publication, Ukrainians are already practicing on simulators in France, and during the talks in Kyiv, the two countries agreed to expand this cooperation.
“This is actually a very necessary thing. I hope the moment when civil aviation flights resume over Ukraine will come as soon as possible. If aviators have no practice, they will not be allowed to resume work immediately due to safety rules. That is why we are helping Ukraine prepare for the moment when your airspace will be fully or partially open,” the French official said.
Bon emphasized that it is not up to him to decide when this will happen. However, according to him, Ukrainian officials are now preparing to open the airspace for civil aviation.
“As I understand it, Ukraine already has certain considerations for this opening, and Kyiv is working hard on it. But, of course, the main issue is still safety,” the minister said.
As a reminder, Ukraine completely closed its airspace to civilian aircraft on the day of the full-scale Russian invasion, February 24, 2022.
At the same time, the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation predicts restrictions on flights over Ukraine until 2029.
