Air traffic between the UK and Ukraine has been grounded amid the Russian military operation, with carriers between the nations suspending flights.
Ryanair, Wizz Air and Ukraine International Airlines have all axed because of safety fears.
Budget carrier Ryanair said: “Due to the closure of Ukrainian airspace overnight and the apparent invasion by Russian forces, all Ryanair flights to/from Ukraine have been suspended for at least the next 14 days.
“All affected passengers will receive email notices later this morning and all flights to/from Ukraine have been removed from sale for at least the next four weeks until further information becomes available from EU safety agencies.
“Ryanair remains committed to our services to/from Ukraine and we look forward to restoring flight services there as soon as it is safe to do so. We sincerely regret and apologise for these unprecedented disruptions and any inconvenience that they will inevitably cause to our Ukrainian customers.”
East European-owned Wizz Air, which operates flights between Luton and the eastern European country, said: “Due to the current events in Ukraine and the airspace closure, Wizz Air regrets to inform our customers that the airline must temporarily suspend all flight operations in the country.
“Passengers booked on arriving or departing Ukrainian flights can find more information on wizzair.com, or alternatively via the airline’s call centre: 00380 893 202 532. The safety and security of our passengers and crew remains our number one priority and we hope normality will return to Ukraine soon.”
Ukraine International Airlines (UIA), which links Gatwick Airport with Kyiv, has suspended all flights to and from Ukraine. The airline said: “The UIA team takes all possible measures to ensure the safety of our passengers.”
Ukraine’s State Air Traffic Services Enterprise closed the country’s airspace at 12.45am GMT on Thursday “due to the high risk of aviation safety for civil aviation”.
It added: “The provision of air traffic services to civilian users of the airspace of Ukraine is suspended.”
Transport secretary Grant Shapps went on social media to report he had instructed the Civil Aviation Authority to “ensure airlines avoid Ukraine airspace to keep passengers and crew safe”.
He added: “We continue to stand with the people of Ukraine and work with our international partners to respond to this act of aggression.”
The UK Foreign Office confirmed “Ukraine’s airspace is closed.”
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