Drones and missiles raise risk that passenger planes could be caught in crossfire

The risk that passenger aircraft could be deliberately targeted or caught in crossfire is increasing, the International Civil Aviation Organization said, urging airlines to strengthen protections for civilian flights.

The United Nations aviation body issued its warning after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy cautioned airlines, insurance companies and passengers using Russian airspace. The ICAO did not identify a specific country, but said civil aviation faced risks from long-range weapons, drones, signal interference and air-defense systems.

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The risk that passenger aircraft will be deliberately attacked or caught in crossfire is increasing.

Member states must intensify efforts “to protect civil aircraft from all risks arising from conflict zones,” the organization said. It also stressed that passenger planes could be attacked deliberately or become unintended victims of fighting.

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Drones will be present in Russian airspace on a scale that must be taken into account.

Zelenskyy said on Tuesday that drones would be present in Russian airspace “on a scale that must be taken into account.” He added, “The safe days in Russian airspace are over.”

“The Ukraine does not want innocent people to lose their lives,” Zelenskyy said, while insisting that Ukraine did not threaten civil aviation itself or any individual civilian aircraft. But airspace “teeming with drones,” he said, was not a place for civilian aviation.

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The safe days in Russian airspace are over.

More than four years after Russia began its invasion, Russian attacks on Ukraine continue, while Ukraine has intensified strikes on Russian infrastructure, including refineries, oil depots and ports.

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The Ukraine does not want innocent people to lose their lives.