For several weeks, Turkish Airlines has been en masse not allowing Russians on flights to Latin American countries – tourists are told that they allegedly do not meet the entry requirements imposed by the authorities of these countries. However, in reality, many of these requirements (at least official ones) that the airline talks about do not exist. After numerous stories about the denied boarding spread in the media, the Kremlin spoke out on this topic, saying that they were counting on resolving the situation taking into account “constructive and friendly” relations with Turkey.
The first reports of Russians not being allowed on flights to Latin America—mainly to Mexico and Argentina—appeared in specialized telegram channels in early March. Passengers flying with a transfer in Istanbul were put on the first flight in Moscow and St. Petersburg, but already in Turkey they were denied further flights. Tourists complained that they were not allowed on flights under false pretexts, were not given any documents confirming the refusal, and were entered into the system as those who did not show up for the flight.
Shortly before this, additional rules for flights to Latin America were published on the airline’s website. So, in particular, in order to board a flight, Turkish Airlines began to require that the return ticket be issued with the same reservation as the return ticket, and that the hotel be fully paid for the entire period of the trip.
In accordance with the laws of the vast majority of countries in the world, airlines are responsible for ensuring that foreigners have the documents necessary for entry.
If a person is denied entry upon arrival due to non-compliance with previously known basic requirements of the authorities (for example, lack of a visa or hotel reservation), the airline will be fined – depending on the country, the fine can be up to several thousand dollars. In addition, the carrier will have to return the passenger to the point of departure at its own expense.
In this regard, quite often situations arise when carriers play it safe and impose additional requirements of their own on passengers, refusing to allow them to board a flight. For example, when at the end of 2022 the Baltic countries and Poland banned Russians from outside the European Union from entering their territory, in many cases airlines refused to allow Russian citizens on flights within the EU, although the restrictions did not apply to them.
An expansive interpretation of the rules is a violation on the part of the carrier, and in the vast majority of cases, a passenger who is denied boarding and has the necessary documents may ultimately receive compensation through the court.
Kommersant wrote that in the case of Turkish Airlines and Mexico, one passenger who did not cross the border costs the airline 6-8 thousand dollars.
These requirements applied to all passengers, but the airline, according to the tourists themselves, only had questions about holders of passports of the Russian Federation and CIS countries. “The employees <...> divided the queue into two lines. In one there are Europeans and Argentines, in the other everyone else is Russia and the CIS. Our passports were stacked without even being opened. <�…> 20 minutes before the flight they say that we cannot fly,” said one of the passengers who was not allowed on the plane.
The airline later published additional requirements on its website. In particular, Turkish Airlines said it reserves the right to deny boarding to a person if it is their first time flying abroad or if they are flying for a long period of time but do not have luggage. No Latin American country had any such official entry requirements.
Soon after the media drew attention to this, the new requirements disappeared from the site. However, in one of the official communications, which was quoted by the Russian Consulate in Istanbul, the airline also stated that it could deny boarding a flight if the passenger is unable to give “clear answers to questions posed regarding the purpose of the trip” (how would an airport employee assess “clarity” “, not specified).
The most high-profile incident occurred in early April, when three tourists were not put on a flight to Cancun. As the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR) said, the women were booked with a fully paid tour, which cost them $45,000 for three, including a round-trip business class flight. Representatives of the tour operator claimed that the women were not given any official documents at the Istanbul airport about being denied boarding, but “they were allowed to photograph a strange and frankly boorish message.” “Since you have not been to powerful countries such as America, Canada or England before, and have not been to Mexico before, you will not be able to fly according to the rules of the Mexican government,” the message allegedly said.
Diplomats tried to influence the situation – the Russian Embassy in Turkey said that it became involved in resolving the situation back in mid-March. However, a month later, the diplomatic mission admitted that repeated appeals to the Turkish Foreign Ministry had not received a “clear response”—massive refusals to board planes continued in the meantime.
Because of this, on April 21, the embassy officially recommended “carefully weighing the advisability” of flying on Turkish Airlines flights, and also, in case of denial of admission to the flight, to apply to the court at the place of residence in Russia. Previously, lawyers interviewed by Kommersant indicated that such claims may have good prospects, since Turkish Airlines has a Russian representative office, so it is quite possible to recover money from the airline.
On April 24, the Kremlin commented on the situation. Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov announced the active work of diplomats and the government, who “tirelessly talk about the unacceptability of such a situation for Russian citizens.” He also emphasized that Russia and Turkey have “very constructive and friendly relations,” which allows us to “count on the settlement of all such issues.”
The company itself has not yet officially commented on the situation. On April 24, the opportunity to buy tickets to Latin America from Russian cities disappeared on the Turkish Airlines website.
Mexico has indeed begun to pay more attention to the documents of tourists in recent months amid an increase in the number of illegal migrants trying to get into the United States through this country. However, the authorities of this country have not officially introduced any additional requirements for Russian tourists since the beginning of 2024.
The Russian Embassy in Mexico, commenting on the refusal of Russians to board Turkish Airlines flights, confirmed that “the Turkish airline, and not the Mexican side, is mainly the initiator of refusals in air transportation.” They noted that the Mexican authorities are addressing the problem of preventing Russians from boarding flights. Kommersant wrote that due to the actions of Turkish Airlines, the total tourist flow from the Russian Federation to Mexico could be reduced by 30–40%.
Tags: Turkish Airlines regularly removes Russians flights Mexico airline explains strict requirements authorities reality exist
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