Sochi airport left with one fuel operator after drone attack PHOTO

Sochi Airport has been left with only one company providing aircraft refuelling services after one of its two fuel operators, a subsidiary of Rosneft, suspended operations, according to an official international notice to pilots.

The notice says that starting September 4, 2026, aircraft at Sochi Airport can be refueled only by Lukoil for technical reasons, Caliber.Az reports.

NOTAM, short for “Notice to Airmen,” is an official operational notice informing pilots and other aviation personnel about changes to flight procedures and aeronautical information.

This is the second notice issued to pilots today concerning changes to operations at Sochi Airport.

The first informed airlines that, due to security measures introduced because of the threat of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the airport area, the airport operator had restricted the number of aircraft landings to no more than eight per hour.

It said the slot time (arrival time) must be reconfirmed by the airport operator.

The restrictions on aircraft arrivals are currently in effect until 2:59 a.m. local time on Saturday, September 5 (11:59 p.m. UTC on September 4).

The restriction on the choice of refueling operators will remain in place longer, until 1:30 p.m. local time on Saturday (10:30 a.m. UTC).

Under normal circumstances, aircraft refuelling services at Sochi Airport are provided by two companies: Lukoil-Aero-Zapad LLC and Rosneft-Aero LLC, a subsidiary of Rosneft. Rosneft had not provided official comments on the reasons for its subsidiary's suspension of operations at the Sochi airport at the time of publication. Rosneft's website says the company provides aircraft refuelling services at 42 airports, including Sochi.

Earlier, ASTRA reported that an air defence division in Sochi had been attacked overnight, after which a fire broke out.

According to authorities, a fire at an oil depot, while black smoke covered the city's sky.

ASTRA’s report noted that the fire broke out at a Rosneft oil depot.

The outlet later said a fire had also broken out at the Lukoil-Yugnefteprodukt oil depot. Anti-drone barriers installed at the targeted oil depots failed to prevent the fires.

Russia's consumer protection watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor, is conducting air-quality tests in Sochi following the attacks on the oil depots.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov