Southwind Airlines was formally announced in April 2022, based out of Antalya, Turkey. Affiliated with Russian tour operator Pegas Touristik,[citation needed] the airline aims to prevent the loss of Russian tourists coming to Turkey following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[1] The airline received preclearance from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation in June of that year.[2] The first commercial flight was flown to Perm on 12 August.[3]

Charter flights to Germany commenced in September 2022.[4] In February 2023, the airline announced plans to carry tourists to Antalya from 16 Russian cities during the summer season.[5] The number of aircraft in the fleet is expected to be 14 by the end of 2023.[6]

EU airspace ban

On 25 March 2024, Southwind Airlines was banned by the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency from operating flights to Finland. According to the agency, Southwind Airlines is factually a Russian airline attempting to bypass European Union sanctions against Russia, imposed in response to Russia's military aggression against Ukraine.[7]

Following the Finnish assessment, the airline was banned on 28 March 2024 from the entire EU airspace, subject to regulation No 833/2014.[8] The airline was to begin flights under its own brand to several airports in the United Kingdom in summer 2024 as well, which however were all subsequently also cancelled.[9] Shorty after, Switzerland formally banned the airline as well.

B77W Southwind