Putin closes airspace in Moscow over assassination fears

An area four times the size of the UK is slated for closure (Picture: AP/e2w)

Vladimir Putin has closed Moscow airspace to all private planes and helicopters as fears of an assassination attempt mount.

The area slated for closed airspace – up to an altitude of 16,700ft -is roughly four times the size of the United Kingdom.

It stretches over a swathe of central Russia from the border with Belarus in the west, north to the St. Petersburg flight zone, east towards the Urals, and joins an already restricted area in the south close to the war zone where flights have been banned for four years.

It also comes amid increasing fears of the ability of long-range Ukrainian unmanned planes to strike Moscow.

Notices to Airmen are expected soon, per orders from Putin’s Transport Ministry.

‘Securi...