Russia has barred British airlines from flying in its airspace.

The Russian civil aviation regulator has issued a ban on British airlines arriving at Russian airports and crossing its airspace.

According to the BBC, Russia stated the move was in response to "unfriendly decisions by the UK aviation authorities."

The UK prohibited Russia's official airline, Aeroflot, from landing in the country on Thursday.

The move was part of a slew of measures imposed in the aftermath of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

"I believe that's their retaliation for us prohibiting Aeroflot from using and landing in the United Kingdom yesterday," UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told ITV. "Tit for tat is their response."

"This measure was taken in accordance with the provisions of the Intergovernmental Air Services Agreement between Russia and the United Kingdom as a response to unfriendly decisions by the United Kingdom aviation authorities regarding the restriction on regular flights of aircraft owned, leased, or operated by a person associated with Russia or registered in Russia," Russia's civil aviation authority Rosaviatsia said.

British Airways said in a statement that it would notify passengers of any cancelled flights and would provide full refunds.

"We regret the inconvenience, but this is plainly beyond our control," the airline added.

"We will continue to keep a careful eye on the situation."

Between London and Moscow, British Airways typically runs three flights each week each direction.

Following Russia's statement, Virgin Atlantic stated several of its flights between the UK, Pakistan, and India had been rerouted. Flight times will be increased by 15 minutes to an hour on some routes.

"The safety and security of our customers and people always comes first," Virgin Atlantic said, "and we're monitoring the situation in Ukraine and Russia extremely carefully following the escalation of war."

Virgin Atlantic's four-times-weekly cargo-only flights between London Heathrow and Shanghai have also been canceled.

Flightradar24 data revealed that BA and Virgin Atlantic flights connecting Delhi, Islamabad, and London take southern paths to avoid Russian airspace.