Air Serbia Flight JU134 Turns Back Over Lithuania After Airport Security Checks

Air Serbia flight JU134, an Airbus A320 listed as YU-APH, departed Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport at 6:48 p.m. local time on November 3, 2026, for Moscow Sheremetyevo. The scheduled departure was 6:25 p.m. local. The aircraft turned around over Lithuania and headed back toward Belgrade.

Air Serbia said it received information from airport services that required additional security checks involving a passenger, and decided to return the aircraft to Belgrade so those procedures could be completed. The airline said passenger and baggage screening is handled by the airport security system and the responsible services, and that the crew followed established procedures. Passengers would be told about the rest of the journey after airport procedures and the needed approvals. At 20:44 UTC that day, the flight was the most-tracked flight as it returned toward Belgrade. Local media reported the flight was related to the current political situation; that report has not been confirmed. Those reports did not confirm that the aircraft had landed back in Belgrade.

Key details

• Flight: Air Serbia JU134, Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport to Moscow Sheremetyevo. Aircraft type given as an Airbus A320 listed as YU-APH.
• Departure: 6:48 p.m. local on November 3, 2026; scheduled 6:25 p.m. local.
• Track: turned around over Lithuania and headed back toward Belgrade. Landing back in Belgrade was not confirmed in those reports.
• Air Serbia said airport services required additional security checks involving a passenger. Local media tied the flight to the current political situation without confirmation.

Air Serbia said airport services required further security checks involving a passenger.

Why it matters

Air Serbia operates scheduled Belgrade–Moscow flights after the European Union closed its airspace to Russian aircraft in 2022. Serbian-registered aircraft may overfly EU members, so that routing can transit Lithuania, an EU and NATO state, instead of Ukrainian airspace. Lithuania lies on the northern path toward northwestern Russia for those flights.