The EU, following Finland, has banned flights over its territory for the Turkish airline Southwind Airlines, which is accused of being effectively controlled by Russia.
This information comes from the Turkish publication Turizm Guncel and the aviation-focused publication aero telegraph.
"Our overall assessment shows that a significant share of ownership and effective control does not belong to Turkish individuals or companies. We have concluded that the airline and its control are associated with Russian players," said Jarkko Saarimäki, the head of the Finnish transport agency Traficom.
Southwind Airlines was founded in 2022 in Antalya and was intended to operate flights to Russia. The establishment of the company is linked to the refusal of many Turkish airlines to fly to Russia and the reduction in the number of flights by Russian airlines.
For the first time, Finland denied Southwind entry to its territory on March 25, citing the company's effective control from Russia, which contradicts EU sanctions regulations.
Southwind Airlines, Germany's Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich, and Stuttgart, as well as the Greek city of Heraklion, were part of its flight programme.
Finally, on March 28th, Brussels informed its members that Southwind Airlines, officially named Cortex Aviation and Tourism Trade, had been banned from takeoff, flight, and landing under Article 31 of Regulation No. 833/2014, Article 3d 31., which came into force in July 2014. It regulates sanctions related to Russia's aggression against Ukraine. It was stated that this ban would be implemented immediately.
Since the entire European airspace has been closed to Southwind, the company will not be able to fly to Zurich.
