Royal Air Maroc suspends pilot over Polisario flag incident

Royal Air Maroc has suspended a Russian trainee pilot after he posted the Polisario Front flag on his Instagram account.

According to the newspaper al3omk, the airline acted in response to complaints from several Moroccan activists on social media, who highlighted his support for the separatist movement.

A Moroccan pilot working for the company revealed that a 16-year-old was responsible for exposing the incident. The teenager sent a message to the Russian pilot, urging him to remove the flag, but was instead blocked. He then contacted a Moroccan pilot to report the incident, only to be blocked again.

The news soon spread to Moroccan aviation-focused pages, prompting Royal Air Maroc to take action and suspend the Russian pilot.