From Radio Free Europe comes news of Russia's sudden banning of "overflights" by Lufthansa."On October 29, the Russian authorities banned Lufthansa Cargo, which is the freight subsidiary of the German airline Lufthansa, from overflying Siberia en route to Asia, the daily "Die Welt" reported on October 31. The paper noted that the ban came without warning. "Die Welt" added that Moscow justified the ban by saying that Lufthansa failed to pay in full what the daily called the "relatively high overflight and insurance fees" charged by Russia.
Germany countered by withdrawing similar overflight rights for Aeroflot and a second, unspecified Russian airline. The two countries' transportation ministries are reportedly trying to find a solution to the problem.
Aeroflot has protested to the authorities in Moscow, saying that the imbroglio has badly affected its operations involving 33 weekly flights to Frankfurt, which must now be diverted to Luxembourg, if they take place at all. Lufthansa officials also said that the Russian ban has forced it to make costly detours to reach its Asian hub in Astana.
Western airlines have long been critical of what they say are exorbitant Russian fees."
