Russian airlines' passenger traffic down by 46% in 2020

The number of passengers flying with Russian airlines in 2020 fell 46% year on year, the aviation authority said on Monday, reflecting the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Some 69.17 million passengers flew with Russian airlines, federal aviation agency Rosaviatsiya said, citing preliminary data.

Russia grounded international flights due to the coronavirus outbreak last year but operations were later resumed on several routes. Domestic traffic fell sharply due to restrictive health measures, but demand has gradually recovered.

In December, Russia airlines carried more than 5 million passengers, which was down 43% from a year earlier, Rosaviatsiya said.