Russia's St Petersburg airport temporarily suspends all flights

An unconfirmed media report said an unidentified object had been spotted in the sky and fighter jets were dispatched to investigate.

A general view shows the Saint Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia (photo credit: MAXIM ZMEYEV/REUTERS)
A general view shows the Saint Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia
(photo credit: MAXIM ZMEYEV/REUTERS)

Russia's Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg temporarily suspended all flights on Tuesday, the city government said, amid unconfirmed Russian media reports of an unidentified object such as a drone above the city.

The government of Russia's second city said on its official Telegram channel that it had halted all flights at the airport until 1200 local time (0900 GMT). It did not provide a reason for the suspension.

The state-run TASS news agency said that airspace within a 200-kilometer (124-mile) radius of Pulkovo had been closed until 1320 local time, citing an unnamed source.

An unconfirmed media report from the online Russian news outlet Baza said an unidentified object had been spotted in the sky and that fighter jets had been dispatched to investigate.

Reuters could not immediately confirm that report.

 Russian Air Force, RF-81719, Sukhoi Su-35S (credit: Wikimedia Commons)
Russian Air Force, RF-81719, Sukhoi Su-35S (credit: Wikimedia Commons)

Data from the Flight Radar website showed a number of domestic flights headed for St. Petersburg turning back to their destinations, while the airspace closure also appeared to be affecting flights on route to the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, which requires planes to fly over St. Petersburg.