Chinese airline flights, and the passengers who choose to fly with them to China out of Europe’s airports, are gifting Russia millions of euros every year, according to reporting in the NL Times and Simple Flying.
The issue, highlighted in research by BNR, stems from changes imposed on routes out of Europe since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. A reciprocal ban on European – Russian airspace means that European airlines flying to destinations such as China must take longer routes to avoid Russian skies. This costs them, in terms of flight time and fuel, and with those costs passed on to customers, many travellers are opting for airlines that are not banned from overflying Russia.
Enter the Chinese. China is not under sanctions and therefore its carriers are free to fly over Russia – shorter routes that gain them time, money, and customers, while European competitors are losing out.
But what’s more, the operators of those non-sanctioned flights, out of airports such as Amsterdam’s Schiphol, are paying Russia for the privilege of using its skies. Data from aviation analyst Cirium makes clear that a range of Chinese firms, including China Eastern, China Southern, and Xiamen, fly direct between Europe and their home hubs, with no inconvenient detours. For each flight, approximately €8,000 are being handed over to Russia to cover air traffic control fees. The flights from Schiphol alone (let alone from other European airports) amount to €18 million in fees given to Russia, a nation on which the EU bloc is supposed to be imposing financial sanctions.
Two questions arising are: do travellers flying with these Chinese airlines realise either the route over Russia being taken, or that they are essentially helping to boost Russia’s economy? Reporting the issue, the NL Times quotes aviation researcher Floris de Haan, who has worked at KLM and Schiphol, as saying: “People primarily choose based on price, frequency, convenience, and travel time. Not what an airline pays to the countries they fly over. They often don’t even know what countries they’re flying over.”
Another consideration is this: even if flyers choosing Chinese or other non-sanctioned airlines do realise that routes over Russia are being taken, and that money is going into the Russian treasury (and war fund) as a result, do they care? Many might still choose the cheaper option, or argue that they care more about the planet, and therefore are prioritising the shortest and lowest carbon-emitting route.
