Russians aren’t exactly spoiled for choice when it comes to the airlines they can fly internationally, given the restrictions currently in place. Turkish Airlines is the carrier offering the most one-stop global connectivity from Russia, and now the country is urging citizens to not fly with the Star Alliance airline to Latin America…
Russians being denied boarding on Turkish Airlines flights
The Russian Embassy in Turkey is advising Russian citizens to take precautions when flying with Turkish Airlines to Latin America. Authorities claim that Turkish Airlines has repeatedly denied boarding to Russians traveling to Latin American countries, without an explanation for why.
According to the embassy, “airline employees either do not provide any clear explanations of the reasons for the refusal, or refer to the entry rules established by the specified states.”
The embassy is recommending that if Russians are denied travel by Turkish Airlines, they should contact the airline and request a written explanation for the denial, and should sue the airline in their country of residence, demanding compensation for damages. Russian officials have reportedly made repeated attempts to get an explanation from the airline, but have been unsuccessful.
The airline explains publicly that the reason for these denied boardings involves tightened entry requirements by the destination countries that people are traveling to.
These seem like pretty standard requirements that are perhaps being enforced more closely, including proof of return travel, proof of enough money to support oneself abroad, proof of a hotel reservation, and more. Furthermore, some people are apparently being flagged for suspicious behavior, like traveling with little or no luggage.
It’s believed that in recent times, around 1,000 Russians have been denied boarding on Turkish Airlines flights to Latin America.
The intent with this seems pretty clear
It doesn’t seem too hard to figure out what’s going on here, despite Russian officials seemingly being puzzled. Of course every country has entry requirements, and has the right to deny visitors entry if those aren’t met.
There has been an uptick in Russians seeking asylum. In some cases that may be in a country in Latin America, while in other cases it may be that a country is simply being used as a jumping off point to get to a place like the United States.
With the uptick in this issue, we’ve seen some countries take action to avoid these kinds of travelers. For example, in late 2023, we saw El Salvador add an $1,130 airport tariff specifically for visitors from Africa and India, and that was clearly based on an uptick of people traveling to El Salvador with the goal of working their way north toward the United States.
Generally airlines are required to check basic travel documents of passengers, and they can be held liable if they transport passengers who don’t have the things required for entry into a country. It sounds to me like maybe Turkish Airlines is taking this a step further, and is verifying additional details for passengers on routes to some destinations, at the request of those governments.
For example, it’s totally standard that you need to provide proof of funds, where you’re going to stay, etc. I imagine most of the people being denied travel by Turkish Airlines would otherwise be turned away at the border.
1,000 people being denied boarding by Turkish Airlines over time really doesn’t sound like that much, when you consider the size of Turkish Airlines’ network. The airline has more service to Latin America than any other airline in the region, by a long shot.
Also, I’m not sure what the Russian government possibly thinks Turkish Airlines’ motive would be for denying people boarding, other than ensuring entry requirements are met? I mean, the two countries get along quite well, and airlines certainly don’t make money by denying people boarding. Perhaps officials are just so shocked why anyone would choose to flee Russia?
Bottom line
Russia is advising its citizens not to fly Turkish Airlines to Latin America, due to an increase in denied boarding of citizens. I have to imagine this isn’t some scheme on Turkish Airlines’ part to annoy Russians, but rather comes down to tighter entry requirements by destination countries, given the increase in Russians seeking asylum.
What do you make about Russia’s Turkish Airlines travel recommendation?
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