First direct flight from Moscow lands in Pyongyang
The first direct flight from Moscow to Pyongyang has landed in the North Korean capital at 9:30 a.m. local time (12:30 a.m. GMT), TASS reports.
The Russian delegation, led by Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology and co-chair of the Russian-North Korean Cooperation Commission Alexander Kozlov, and crew members were greeted with flowers.
The flight was performed by a Boeing 777-200ER of Nordwind Airlines seating 440 passengers. It left Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow at 7:30 pm on Sunday (4:30 GMT). The flight took about eight hours.
The return flight is scheduled for July 29.
The Russian Federal Air Transport Agency, Rosaviatsiya, issued an authorization to Nordwind for scheduled flights between the capitals of the two countries in early July. The air carrier is cleared to make flights up to two times per week. The Russian Ministry of Transport said later that the first flight to the North Korean capital will be on July 27 and the flights will be performed once per month to generate stable demand.
Direct flights between Russia’s Far Eastern city of Vladivostok and Pyongyang are operated by North Korea’s Air Koryo three times a week.
Direct air service between the two countries was resumed in August 2023 after a pause amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Earlier, it was reported Kazakhstan sees 7.2 million passengers in air travel in the first half of 2025.
