Ministry of Economy denies reports of Russian Air Force aircraft crossing Georgian airspace

The Georgian Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development on Friday issued a statement denying a media report on a Russian Air Force aircraft crossing Georgian airspace between Moscow and Yerevan.

The Ministry responded to the report of the Mtavari Arkhi channel, which said the incident could become “another international scandal” on the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, by denying the occurrence and accusing the channel of releasing “harmful, dangerous and irresponsible” information.

[I]it should be noted that this TV station, traditionally, continues to make harmful, dangerous and irresponsible assessments, especially amid the ongoing events in Ukraine,” the Ministry’s statement said, before denying any Russian Air Force aircraft had entered the country’s airspace.

The Ministry did confirm use of the Georgian space by a “regular civilian flight”, stating a Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations aircraft had used an aerial route.

The Georgian sky was used by an aircraft owned by the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations, with registration number RA76429. This flight was a regular civilian flight that did not require any additional permission from Georgia,” the Ministry, which governs the use of airspace in Georgia, explained in the statement.

The Ministry’s response also said Georgian airspace has been closed to Russian military craft since the 2008 war between the two countries, but added emergency management aircraft were exempt from military status and could therefore use the space.