More than 50 flights were cancelled, and a further 10 delayed, after the Silent Crow group said it had engaged in a campaign against the Russian national carrier.
Departure boards at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport turned red, cutting short many Russians’ vacations before they had even boarded a flight. Sketchy at best details emerged from the authorities, although it is clear that they are not prepared to take any significant risks at this time.
Officially the Kremlin described the situation as “worrying.” Spokesman Dmitry Peskov declared
The information that we are reading in the public domain is quite alarming. The hacker threat is a threat that remains for all large companies providing services to the population.
Self-declared perpetrators Silent Crow—claiming to be working with Belarusians ‘Cyber Partisans’—stated “Glory to Ukraine! Long live Belarus!”
Whereas since 2022 Russian travellers have grown accustomed to drone-based travel disruption, hacks on national infrastructure could represent a new departure in the conflict. Growing cyber-warfare could well further prolong the war between Russia and Ukraine, despite the efforts of Donald Trump, Hungary and Slovakia to push for peace.
