US bans Chinese airlines from flying over Russia

The U.S. Transportation Department has proposed banning Chinese airlines from flying over Russian airspace on routes to and from America, citing an “unfair” competitive advantage. The proposal targets passenger flights operated by Air China, China Eastern, Xiamen Airlines, and China Southern, but it does not apply to cargo operations. The affected airlines have been given two days to respond, and a final decision could be made as early as November.

This move follows Russia’s 2022 decision to close its airspace to many Western carriers after Western nations barred Russian flights amid the Ukraine conflict. As a result, non‑Russian airlines have been forced to reroute around Russian territory, adding time and cost to transcontinental flights. Chinese carriers, however, have continued to use Russian airspace, which the U.S. Department of Transportation says is “unfair and has resulted in substantial adverse competitive effects on U.S. air carriers.”

Some U.S. airlines oppose the measure, warning that avoiding Russian airspace would make direct flights to China less viable because of higher costs and reduced cargo capacity. The proposal has already affected the stock market, with shares of China’s three largest airlines slipping slightly after the report.

The ban is part of escalating tensions between Washington and Beijing over trade policy. The United States has threatened new tariffs, accusing China of “funding” the Ukraine conflict through energy imports from Moscow. China has dismissed these claims as “unacceptable,” insisting its trade with Russia is “legitimate and lawful.”

The development occurs amid efforts to restore flights between the United States and Russia, which have been suspended since 2022. Kremlin aide Kirill Dmitriev recently suggested that U.S.–Russia air travel could resume by late 2025 as part of Ukraine peace negotiations mediated by the United States. Russian Ambassador to the U.S. Alexander Darchiev confirmed in August that the process of restoring flights between the two countries was already “underway.”