Continuous delays persist at Sochi airport for the third consecutive day.
Sochi, Russia - Sochi Airport is currently experiencing widespread flight disruptions following a Ukrainian drone strike on a Lukoil oil depot near the airport on July 23, 2025. The incident resulted in a massive fire, causing the airport to suspend operations, and leading to the delay or cancellation of approximately 60 outbound and 38 inbound flights.
According to reports, the affected arrival flights are from Penza, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Perm, Istanbul, and Antalya, with international flights to Antalya and Istanbul also delayed. As a result, nearly 800 passengers have been stranded across several cities, including Novosibirsk, Omsk, and Tomsk, as authorities work to control the fire and assess infrastructure damage.
The operational suspension is expected to last at least through July 24, 2025, the day after the attack, as emergency response efforts continue. Artem Koreniako, press secretary of Rosaviatsiya, announced these restrictions in his Telegram channel.
Despite the current challenges, the airport delays are not affecting all flights. Sochi Airport resumed regular flights to Bodrum on June 14, after a two-year hiatus, marking a positive development for the transportation sector, including aviation and airports.
Passengers whose flights are delayed at Sochi Airport should be provided with food, drinks, and if necessary, accommodation in a hotel. Among the delayed departure flights are those to St. Petersburg, Orenburg, Samara, Moscow, Surgut, Saransk, Kazan, Kirov, Nizhnekamsk, Irkutsk, Astrakhan, Krasnoyarsk, and Volgograd.
The organization responsible for the airport is SVAO (Southern Federal University Airport). No specific Russian or foreign airlines that delay flights the least at Sochi Airport were mentioned in the article. The resumption of flights to Bodrum was reported by Yuga.ru. No new information about the delays being due to restrictions in other airports was provided in this paragraph.
The city where the airport is located is Sochi. The delays for departure and arrival range from half an hour to eight hours. On July 21, Sochi Airport announced a stabilization and adjustment of flight schedules.
- Given the current disruptions at Sochi Airport, affected passengers may find it challenging to maintain their desired lifestyle, as travel plans to cities like Novosibirsk, Omsk, and Tomsk have been affected by the delay or cancellation of flights.
- Despite the inconvenience due to the drone strike, the weather in Sochi might still offer a chance for those stranded passengers to take a break and explore the local area, if they are not reliant on connecting flights, especially for those on delayed flights to Bodrum.
