In fact, aircraft operated by Russian operators should have been banned from Slovakia and EU airspace long ago. Nevertheless, on March 1, 2022, an Ilyushin Il-76TD operated by Volga-Dnepr Airlines landed in Bratislava. The government of Slovakia issued a special permit.

The background is that nuclear material that is urgently needed in Slovakian nuclear power plants was on board. The nuclear power plants in this country are of the Soviet type and are therefore heavily dependent on nuclear fuel from Russia.

Slovakia therefore issued a special permit, which meant that the Il-76TD could fly undisturbed from Moscow via Belarus and Poland to Bratislava. The machine was then allowed to be flown back again.

Despite the ongoing European ban on Russian airlines and aircraft, a Volga-Dnepr Airlines Ilyushin IL76TD landed today in Bratislava, Slovakia.

“The Ministry of Economy has helped secure the supply of nuclear fuel used by the Slovak Electricity Company (SE or Slovenské Elektrárne). At dawn on March 1, 2022, an IL76 aircraft of Volga Dnepr Airlines landed at Bratislava Airport and transported nuclear fuel from the Russian Federation to us. Although the European country had closed its airspace to Russian flights, the government issued an exception in this case, in accordance with current regulations. These exceptions can be used in the case of humanitarian aid and nuclear fuel,” said the official statement of the Slovak Ministry of Economy.