Flights between Kaliningrad and mainland Russia to continue despite Baltics' total ban - regional authorities

KALININGRAD. Feb 26 (Interfax) - The Baltic countries banning Russia from their airspaces will not stop flights between its Kaliningrad region and mainland, the regional governor's spokesperson Dmitry Lyskov told Interfax on Saturday.

"To date, Estonia and Latvia have announced flight bans. Lithuania is likely to follow suit, with these anti-Russian sanctions. But even so, flights between Kaliningrad region and mainland Russia will not discontinue. Flights will be made over the neutral Baltic waters, from Kaliningrad to St. Petersburg and onwards," Lyskov said.

Such an air bridge has already been used for years by Russian military aircraft, which are barred from NATO countries' airspace, he said. This is a well-trodden route. "Sometimes, though, Estonian authorities accuse our military of crossing into the country's airspace for some seconds. But the Russian side always validly dismisses such accusations," Lyskov said.

At present, flights between Kaliningrad region and mainland Russia pass through Lithuania's airspace.