Latest news with #NordwindAirlines
The Journal
2 hours ago
- Business
- The Journal
Russians can now get direct flights from Moscow to... North Korea
A PASSENGER PLANE from North Korea has landed in Moscow, the first direct commercial flight from North Korea's capital to Russia's in decades as the two countries deepen ties. The Boeing 777 aircraft, operated by Russia's Nordwind Airlines, flew from Moscow to Pyongyang yesterday before making the return trip to Russia today. The two countries re-opened the flight path at the same time as they are seeking to forge closer diplomatic ties. After the first flight from Moscow arrived in Pyongyang, a video posted on Russian news agency RIA Novosti's Telegram account showed North Korean officials and flight attendants welcoming the Russian passengers with flowers at Pyongyang's international airport. A North Korean official was seen checking the temperatures of the disembarking Russians with an electronic thermometer. Russia's Minister of Natural Resources Alexander Kozlov was among those on the inaugural flight, RIA Novosti said on Telegram. Nordwind Airlines — which used to carry Russians to holiday destinations in Europe before the EU imposed a ban on Russian flights — had tickets priced at 45,000 rubles (€480) for the route. Russia has said the Moscow-Pyongyang route will be serviced once per month. Advertisement The plane landed back in the Moscow at 0750 GMT today, completing its first round trip on the route, according to the website of Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport. The 440-seater plane was 'completely full', with most of the passengers being North Korean, Russia's state RIA news agency reported. Russian diplomat Matvei Krivosheyev, who was also on board, was quoted as saying it was the first such flight in almost three decades. 'We are confident that this flight will be in demand both by Russian tourists and by Korean comrades,' he told the RIA news agency. The only other airports that offer regular commercial flights to North Korea are in Beijing and Shenyang in China and in Vladivostok, a city in the far east of Russia. Russia and North Korea, two heavily sanctioned nations, signed a military deal last year, including a mutual defence clause, during a rare visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin to Pyongyang. South Korean and Western intelligence agencies have said Pyongyang sent more than 10,000 soldiers to Russia's Kursk region last year, along with artillery shells, missiles and long-range rocket systems. Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting for Russia, according to South Korea. © AFP 2025
Straits Times
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
First direct flight from Pyongyang lands in Moscow
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox The Boeing 777 aircraft, operated by Russia's Nordwind Airlines, had already flown from Moscow to Pyongyang on July 27. MOSCOW - A passenger plane from Pyongyang landed at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport on July 29, the first direct flight from the North Korean capital to Moscow in decades as the two countries deepened ties. The Boeing 777 aircraft, operated by Russia's Nordwind Airlines, had already flown from Moscow to Pyongyang on July 27. It landed back in the Russian capital at 0750 GMT on July 29, completing its first round trip on the route, according to the website of Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport. The 440-seater plane was 'completely full', with most of the passengers being North Korean, Russia's state RIA news agency reported. Russian diplomat Matvei Krivosheyev, who was also on board, was quoted as saying it was the first such flight in almost three decades. 'We are confident that this flight will be in demand both by Russian tourists and by Korean comrades,' he told the RIA news agency. Russia and North Korea have forged closer ties in recent years, with Pyongyang supplying troops and weapons for Russia's military operations in Ukraine. The two countries signed a mutual defence pact last year, when Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the reclusive state. North Korea confirmed for the first time in April that it had deployed a contingent of its soldiers to the frontline in Ukraine, alongside Russian troops. AFP
Epoch Times
5 hours ago
- Epoch Times
First Direct Flight From Pyongyang Touches Down in Moscow
The first direct passenger flight from Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, to Moscow landed at Sheremetyevo Airport on July 29, according to Russian state news agency TASS. The roughly eight-hour flight was operated by a Boeing 777 belonging to the Russian carrier Nordwind Airlines, the news agency said.
TimesLIVE
a day ago
- Business
- TimesLIVE
Russia starts first Moscow-Pyongyang passenger flights in decades
Russia will launch direct passenger flights from Moscow to North Korea's capital Pyongyang on Sunday, Russian authorities said, as the two former communist bloc allies move to improve ties following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The start of regular flights between the capitals for the first time since the mid-1990s, according to Russian aviation blogs, follows the resumption of Moscow-Pyongyang passenger rail service, a 10-day journey, in June. The first flight will leave Sheremetyevo Airport at 7pm (4pm GMT), according to the airport's timetable. The eight-hour flight will be operated by a Boeing 777-200ER with a capacity of 440 passengers, Russia's RIA state news agency said on Sunday. It said tickets started at 44,700 roubles (R9,977), and the first flight quickly sold out. Russia's civil aviation authority Rosaviatsia has granted Nordwind Airlines permission to operate flights between Moscow and Pyongyang twice a week. The transport ministry said in a statement that for now flights would operate once a month, "to help build stable demand".
Malay Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Malay Mail
Russia launches first direct flights to N. Korea amid deepening wartime alliance
MOSCOW, July 28 — Russia on Sunday began direct commercial flights to North Korea, in a further sign of closer ties with its Asian ally helping its offensive in Ukraine. The first Moscow-Pyongyang flight, operated by Russia's Nordwind Airlines, took off at 1625 GMT, according to the Sheremetyevo airport's website. It is scheduled to land in the North Korean capital some eight hours later. But initially, the route will only be serviced once a month, Russia's transport ministry said. Nordwind Airlines — which used to carry Russians to holiday destinations in Europe before the EU imposed a ban on Russian flights — had tickets priced at 45,000 rubles (RM2,410). 'This is a historical event, strengthening the ties between our nations,' Oleg, a Nordwind employee managing the flight who did not want to give his full name, told AFP at the airport. He also declined to say how many passengers were on board. 'For the first time in more than 70 years of diplomatic relations, we are launching direct flights between the capitals of our countries,' Russia's deputy transport minister Vladimir Poteshkin was quoted as saying by the ministry's Telegram account. Russia's state news agency TASS reported that the first return flight from Pyongyang to Moscow would take place on Tuesday. Russia and North Korea restored train links on June 17 after suspending them in 2020 during the Covid pandemic. The two countries have been forging closer military bonds in recent years, with Pyongyang supplying troops and weapons for Russia's military operations in Ukraine. They signed a mutual defence pact last year, when Russian President Vladimir Putin visited North Korea. North Korea confirmed for the first time in April that it had deployed a contingent of its soldiers to the frontline in Ukraine, alongside Russian troops. — AFP
