MOSCOW, April 23 - RAPSI. The Moscow Commercial Court will hear on June 13 the Aeroflot airline's defamation lawsuit against the Izvestia newspaper.

Aeroflot filed a lawsuit after Izvestia alleged in an article in February that pilots sometimes fall asleep during their flights due to their excessive workload. The plaintiff demands that the defendant refute the information and pay 5 million rubles ($171,030) in compensation.

Izvestia denies the claim. The paper said on Monday that it has not yet prepared its response to the lawsuit as it is gathering evidence. The defendant plans to send a request to the Sheremetyevo Pilot Trade Union, as its information was used in the article.

The airline urged media not to disseminate the allegedly false information published by Izvestia.

Aeroflot is now disputing the Moscow State Labor Inspection's order to the airline to offset its pilots for operations under hazardous and harmful conditions and at night. The Moscow Nagatinsky District Court scheduled the next hearing for May 12.

Aeroflot is a member of the SkyTeam air alliance based at the Sheremetyevo International Airport. The Federal Agency for State Property Management is Aeroflot's primary shareholder, with a 51.17 percent stake in the company. It flies to 898 destinations in 169 countries.