- Korean Air was forced to cancel flights from Seoul to Moscow because it could not refuel its planes.
- The carrier said Russia may be having trouble sourcing jet fuel due to Western sanctions.
- The price of oil has skyrocketed in recent weeks, making reroutes around Russian airspace costly for airlines.
On Friday, Korean Air announced it is canceling flights to Russia for the next two weeks, telling Reuters that it can no longer refuel in Moscow. Korean operates regular service between Moscow and Seoul once weekly on Thursdays, according to Cirium data.
Unlike airlines from countries in Europe and North America, Seoul-based Korean is not banned from flying in Russian airspace, but the carrier said sanctions against Russia may make it difficult to source jet fuel.
"We were informed by a Russia-based refueling service provider this afternoon that we can no longer refuel our planes at the airport in Moscow," a Korean Air spokesperson told Reuters.
The airline is also rerouting cargo flights to fly directly between Seoul and destinations in Europe instead of stopping in Moscow for fuel. The new routing will force Korean to carry less cargo in exchange for more fuel to make the nonstop journey.
Both the suspended passenger flights and cargo reroutes will be in effect through March 18, according to the carrier.
Korean is not the only airline impacted by Russia's possible lack of oil. According to South Korea's national newspaper, Korea JoongAng Daily, Seoul-based Asiana Airlines will also stop fueling in Moscow on its daily cargo flights to Frankfurt and London.
Despite the detours, both South Korean carriers said they do not plan to avoid Russian airspace on future flights, JoongAng reported. The price of oil has skyrocketed recently, reaching $125 per barrel on Monday, according to Bloomberg, so flying around the country could prove very costly for carriers.
The news comes as airlines continue to pull out of Russia amid its invasion of Ukraine on February 24. Many European and North American nations have been barred from Russian airspace in tit-for-tat sanctions, forcing carriers to add up to $12,000 per hour flying creative routes around the nation.
Both British Airways and German carrier Lufthansa are adding one hour of flight time on certain routes between Europe and Asia by flying south of Russia and Ukraine.
Meanwhile, some carriers have opted to cancel flights instead of rerouting. According to Reuters, both Japan Airlines and Tokyo-based All Nippon Airways canceled all service to and from Europe on Thursday, citing safety concerns. Most of the airlines' flights were either canceled or rerouted on Friday as well.
Fueling in Moscow is just another obstacle companies must overcome in Russia. Since the invasion of Ukraine, aircraft lessors have been forced to end contracts with Russian airlines and may struggle to get the planes out of the nation.
Moreover, Boeing and Airbus stopped the shipment of spare parts to Russia, making it difficult for local carriers to repair planes. The sanctions may force some companies to buy uncertified parts from Iran, or "cannibalize" parts from lessor planes.