Author: Laura Kulakova
Source: VAS Starptautiskā lidosta Rīga
Preliminary data on Airport performance in the first seven months show that with the number of passengers and flights gradually increasing, the number of passengers served at Riga Airport in July reached 23% of last year's numbers.
In July, the Airport served 187.4 thousand passengers, which is 132 thousand passengers more than a month before. However, in general, as compared to last year, the number of passengers served at Riga Airport has decreased significantly: in the first seven months of 2020, only 1.5 million passengers were served at the Airport, which is a drop of more than 65% as compared to the corresponding period last year.
Reklāma
The majority or 66% of the passengers handled in July were carried by the national airline airBaltic, 13% by the Irish low-cost airline Ryanair and 11% by the Hungarian low-cost carrier WizzAir. The number of passengers who use Riga Airport as a convenient transfer point for their further travel is gradually increasing: the number of transit and transfer passengers in July accounted for 24% of the total number of passengers. The most popular destinations from Riga in July were Oslo, London, Helsinki, Frankfurt and Tallinn, whereas the fullest aircraft were recorded on holiday routes to Greece, Cyprus and the south of France.
In July, 3278 flights were served at Riga Airport; in the first seven months of this year – more than 22 thousand flights. It is 55.8% less than in the corresponding period of the previous year.
In July, the largest number of flights – 2070 flights – were operated by scheduled passenger carriers, but a significant share – almost 25% of the total number of flights – were business aviation and cargo flights. In the seventh month of the year, 556 business aviation aircraft landed and took off at Riga Airport, while cargo carriers performed 243 flights, delivering 2030 tonnes of cargo to be serviced at Riga Airport. A total of 11.9 thousand tonnes of cargo were handled at Riga Airport during the first seven months of the year, which is 23.3% less than last year.
The Polish airline LOT Polish Airlines and the Norwegian low-cost airline Norwegian resumed their operations at Riga Airport in July, thus currently a total of seven airlines operate flights from Riga to 49 destinations. A full list of current and planned destinations is available here: www.flyfromriga.lv.
The Airport would like to remind you that international passenger services to Latvia are allowed from countries where the cumulative Covid-19 14-day incidence rate per 100 000 inhabitants is lower than 25, as well as from countries included in the European Commission's list of safe countries. The list of countries is available on the website of the Centre for Disease Prevention and Control https://www.spkc.gov.lv and it is updated once a week – on Fridays.
Passengers travelling to Latvia from countries where the Covid-19 cumulative 14-day incidence rate per 100 000 inhabitants is above 16 must observe 14-days of self-isolation.
All passengers entering Latvia must fill in a confirmation with a commitment to comply with the epidemiological safety measures established in Latvia and, if necessary, ensure self-isolation. The relevant form must be completed and handed over to the flight crew or at the Airport upon arriving. The questionnaire is available in Latvian, English and Russian on the website of the Ministry of Transport: www.sam.gov.lv
The Airport urges passengers to make sure that their flight is not planned to/from a country that has been included in the list of epidemiologically unsafe countries. It is important to remember that when planning a trip, passengers should get thoroughly familiar with both the epidemiological safety requirements of the Airport and the airline, and the restrictions on staying in the country of destination.
Enhanced epidemiological safety requirements are also in force at Riga Airport. Passengers must wear a face mask when in Riga Airport. Entrance to the terminal is allowed only to passengers with boarding passes – persons seeing off or meeting passengers are not permitted to enter the terminal. The Airport encourages passengers to keep their distance where possible and to wash and disinfect their hands regularly. To help passengers comply with these requirements, distance signs as well as hand sanitizers are available at the Airport terminal.
Riga Airport is a fast-growing Northern European air traffic hub. Riga Airport served more than 7.8 million passengers in 2019. The Cirium study recognized Riga Airport as the fourth most punctual airport in the world in 2019.
To publish this article please contact BalticTravelnews.eu editorial board
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