Finnair (Helsinki) and Finnish railway operator VR are cooperating to offer combined air-and-rail tickets between St. Petersburg, Russia and international destinations connecting via the Helsinki hub.

Combined air-and-rail tickets will enable passengers flying throughout Finnair’s network in Europe, Asia and North America to connect to and from St. Petersburg on a high-speed Allegro train. Finnair began selling the combined tickets on October 1, 2014, and the first Allegro train (below) connection with AY code will be on December 1, 2014.

The train ride between Helsinki’s Central Railway Station and St. Petersburg’s Finland Station takes 3 hours and 36 minutes. Passport and customs procedures are carried out on board the train while en route, saving customers’ time and allowing for a smooth passenger experience. The ticket also allows stopovers in Helsinki, enabling customers with business in both cities to make a single booking while also giving leisure travellers the opportunity to take time to explore the Finnish capital region.

In other news, Finnair has released this statement:

The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) has awarded Finnair a position on The A List: The CDP Climate Performance Leadership Index 2014, for actions to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate the business risks of climate change.

The index presents 187 listed companies identified as demonstrating a superior approach to climate change mitigation. The A List is compiled by CDP, an NGO that provides the only global environmental reporting system at the request of 767 investors who represent some $92 trillion (US) in assets, or more than a third of the world’s invested capital.

Information provided by nearly 2,000 listed companies has been independently assessed against CDP’s widely-respected scoring methodology and ranked accordingly. Finnair is the only airline awarded an A grade for its climate performance, earning a position on this global ranking of corporate efforts to mitigate climate change.

“Aviation is an extremely energy- and capital-intensive sector, and our advanced capacity to measure and disclose information relating to this intensity allows us and our shareholders not only to understand Finnair’s climate impact but take steps to actively mitigate it while also controlling costs,” says Finnair CEO Pekka Vauramo. “This recognition from CDP shows that we are determined to proactively meet a commercial and regulatory landscape that is rapidly being transformed by climate change.”

“Global greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise and we face steep financial risk if we do not mitigate them,” says CDP CEO Paul Simpson.

“The business case for action to mitigate climate change has never been stronger or more urgent. For this reason we congratulate those businesses that have achieved a position on The A List: The CDP Climate Performance Leadership Index. These companies are responding to market demand for environmental accountability and at the same time are making progress towards the realization of sustainable economies.”

Finnair is on track to reduce per-seat CO2 emissions by 24 percent between 2009 and 2017. The airline’s actions to reach this target and improve its environmental performance include:

Flying with a modern, fuel-efficient fleet. In 2013 Finnair was the global launch customer of Airbus A321 with fuel-saving Sharklets and next year will be the European launch customer of the next-generation A350XWB, which will be approximately 25 per cent more fuel-efficient (and less carbon intensive) than the previous generation of aircraft.

Strict “weight watching” of aircraft, including flying with ultra-light ULDs (unit load devices, or cargo containers) that save more than 2.5 million kg of CO2 emissions every year.

Continuous Descent Landings and other operational measures to limit fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.

Exploring the development (with partners in the value chain) of a biofuel hub at Helsinki Airport

In 2013, consolidating its offices and moving to a new LEED Platinum-certified head office near Helsinki Airport.

Top Copyright Photo: Paul Denton/AirlinersGallery.com. Finnair’s Embraer ERJ 190-100LR OH-LKI (msn 19000117) taxies at Geneva (all others by VR).

Finnair: 

VR Train Route Map in Finland and extended routes to Russia:

Finnair Aircraft Slide Show:

http://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-Europe-2/Airlines-Europe-2/Finnair