Ukraine is 95% ready to resume flights but needs adequate air defense, minister says

Ukraine is “95%” ready to resume commercial flights, but the most important remaining factor is ensuring the safety of passengers, Municipal and Territorial Development Minister Oleksii Kuleba said on November 21.

Speaking to the Suspilne channel, the minister said: “The security architecture requires very serious air defense… So if we have enough air defense for this or that airport, we can talk about it. Unfortunately, it is impractical today.”

With the start of martial law and the full-scale invasion in 2022, Ukraine has closed its airspace to civil aviation, but some recent statements suggest the country could resume commercial flights as early as next year.

Asked whether it is possible to hope for the opening of air traffic in 2025, Kuleba said that it depends on the situation on the front lines.

“Of course we can hope. But if we are realistic, then we can basically only talk about the situation at the front. As with all other issues affecting the development of our country: first the front, then everything else,” Kuleba said.

Crispin Ellison, senior partner at insurance and risk management firm Marsh McLennan, said on November 7 that at least one of Ukraine’s airports, either in Lviv or Boryspil near Kyiv, could resume operations by the end of January 2025.

“The opening of Lviv is the beginning of a journey towards the opening of Boryspil,” Ellison told a Kyiv Independent reporter at the Kyiv International Economic Forum.

“What we need is confirmation of the (air) defense and military situation that allows for regulatory approval,” Ellison added. Under favorable circumstances, Ellison said, five or six airlines could agree to operate flights from Ukraine in January.

Lviv is located in the west of the country. Although it suffered a number of deadly attacks during the full-scale war, it was attacked significantly less often than other major cities such as Kiev, Kharkiv or Odessa.

Ukrinform reported that insurance companies are ready to make political decisions on the resumption of air traffic with Ukraine.

In late October, Ukraine presented a roadmap for the partial reopening of its airspace under martial law, outlining a phased plan and requirements.

International airlines, including LOT Polish Airlines, SkyUp Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Wizz Air and others, also joined the discussion about opening airspace in Ukraine during martial law.