airBaltic Celebrates 20 Years in Baltic Capitals

Author: Jānis Vanags
Source: www.airbaltic.com

This week the Latvian airline airBaltic celebrates the 20^th anniversary of its Vilnius – Riga and Tallinn – Riga services. Since 1996 airBaltic has carried almost 3 million passengers on both routes and today they have become vital for connectivity into and out of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia.

Reklāma

Wolfgang Reuss, SVP of Network Management of airBaltic: “We started out in our home markets with mere 6 thousand passengers served in 1996, but now we have over 350 thousand of passengers annually on our intra-Baltic services offering convenient onward connections to 60 destinations in Europe, the Middle East and the CIS. We are planning to develop in the Baltic region by offering more direct flights under our Horizon 2021 business plan, which aims at operating 11 direct routes out of Vilnius and Tallinn in the next five years. However, strong demand from both outbound and inbound travellers is a prerequisite for future growth in Estonia and Lithuania”.

airBaltic launched its Vilnius-Riga service on 29 January 1996 utilising a Saab 340 aircraft. airBaltic started in Lithuania with just 3653 passengers annually, and has now grown to 183 106 passengers served in 2015. The first flight on the Tallinn – Riga route was operated by Saab 340 on 30 January 1996. The route was used by 2928 passengers annually 20 years ago, while today 180 830 passengers boarded airBaltic aircraft that link Estonia with Riga and major European hubs.

As previously announced, airbaltic has improved flight frequencies to its existing services from Tallinn and Vilnius, and airBaltic will launch a new direct route between Vilnius and Tallinn on April 18, 2016 that will offer even more convenient travel from and between Tallinn and Vilnius, and beyond to destinations out of the Baltic region.

* Lowest fare, including taxes, fees and service charges, on www.airBaltic.com, subject to availability

airBaltic serves over 60 destinations from its home base in Riga, Latvia. From every one of these locations, airBaltic offers convenient connections via Riga to its network spanning Europe, Scandinavia, CIS and the Middle East. In addition, airBaltic also offers new direct flights from Tallinn and Vilnius.

airBaltic in brief:

airBaltic (AIR BALTIC CORPORATION) is the world’s most punctual airline connecting the Baltic region with 60 destinations in Europe, the Middle East, and the CIS. airBaltic is a joint stock company that was established in 1995. Its primary shareholder is the Latvian state, which holds 99.8% of the stock. The airBaltic fleet consists of 24 aircraft – 12 Boeing 737 and 12 Bombardier Q400Next Gen. airBaltic has received numerous international awards for excellence, innovative services, and achievements in reshaping its business. In 2012, airBaltic was ranked by Airlinetrends among the Top 10 airlines globally for innovations. airBaltic achieved the best on-time performance globally for two years running in 2014 and 2015.

To publish this article please contact BalticTravelnews.eu editorial board

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