YanAir (YE, Kyiv Igor Sikorsky) is to suspend its scheduled operations for the duration of the current winter season. In a statement on its website, the Ukrainian carrier said the decision had been taken in the wake of low demand but added that it would maintain charter operations.

Flights between Kyiv Igor Sikorsky and Tbilisi were suspended on October 26 while those to Odesa and Batumi, Georgia will follow on November 15 and November 29 respectively. Operations are expected to resume on March 28, 2015.

The crisis affecting the east of the country coupled with a standoff with Russia have severely affected the country's aviation industry with most carriers scaling back their operations. Among the most affected is Ukraine International Airlines (PS, Kyiv Boryspil) which recently appealed to Kiev for USD100million in emergency loans to help stave off looming job cuts and capacity reductions.

YanAir plans to wet-lease out some of its aircraft to other carriers with A320-200 UR-YAD (msn 726) having already been delivered to an undisclosed African customer according to Skyliner Aviation.