President Biden announced during his first State of The Union address Tuesday night that the American airspace will be closed to Russian flights, joining European Union countries and Canada.
“Tonight, I am announcing that we will join our allies in closing off American air space to all Russian flights – further isolating Russia – and adding an additional squeeze on their economy,” Biden said.
The Federal Aviation Administration detailed that the ban will apply to “operations of all aircraft owned, certifies, operated, registered, chartered, leased, or controlled, by for, or for the benefit of, a person who is a citizen of Russia.”
“This includes passenger and cargo flights, and scheduled as charter flights, effectively closing U.S. air space to all Russian commercial air carriers and other Russian civil aircraft.”
The decision will be “fully effective” by the end of the day Wednesday. Also on Tuesday, Boeing announced that it plans to suspend all sorts of maintenance and technical support for Russian airlines.
“We have suspended major operations in Moscow and temporarily closed our office in Kyiv,” Boeing said in a statement.
“We are also suspending parts, maintenance, and technical support services for Russian airlines. As the conflict continues, our teams are focused on ensuring the safety of our teammates in the region.”
