Lufthansa has asked the German government to intervene in a dispute with Russian authorities after Lufthansa Cargo aircraft were banned from using Russian airspace.
All flights to the Far East have been affected. Lufthansa had to look for different routes, making the flights longer and using more fuel. According to the German newspaper Die Welt, Lufthansa did not pay fees for flying over Russia in full. A Lufthansa spokesman confirmed this, saying the reason lies in differences of opinion about the cost of flying over the country. Meanwhile, Russia is to increase tariffs for using its airspace to foreigners by more than 8% starting from November 1.