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Aeroflot, tour operator Biblio Globus and Transaero Airlines (Moscow) have reached agreement on transportation of Transaero passengers through December 15, 2015.
Aeroflot has made available a long-range Boeing 777-200 from the fleet of its Orenair (Orenburg Airlines) (Orenburg) subsidiary to the tour operator in fulfilment of obligations between Biblio Globus and Transaero to carry tourists through December 15. The decision was taken due to Transaero’s inability to operate its own planes on the tour operator’s routes and the cancellation by Transaero of all charter flights after October 25.
Biblio Globus thanks the management of Aeroflot and Transaero for its assistance in resolving the challenge of carrying Transaero passengers. The airplane will be made available for two months, from October 15 to December 15.
Copyright Photo: OSDU/AirlinersGallery.com. Orenair (Orenburg Airlines) Boeing 777-2Q8 ER VQ-BNU (msn 29908) departs from Moscow’s Shermetyevo Airport.
Aeroflot Russian Airlines (Moscow) on March 21 put into service its new Sukhoi Superjet 100-95B RA-89047 (msn 95047) on the Moscow (Sheremetyevo) – Minsk route. The pictured new SSJ100 carries a special emblem celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the Russian victory in World War II. The airline issued this statement and photos:
An Aeroflot Sukhoi Superjet 100 with livery commemorating the 70th Anniversary of the Victory in the Second World War on Saturday (March 21) completed its first flight on the Moscow-Minsk-Moscow route.
The aircraft, the newest SSJ-100 in Aeroflot’s fleet, is named after Alexander Gruzdin, one of the Soviet Union’s leading wartime pilots. Minsk was chosen as the destination for the first flight because of its particular symbolism and importance in the Victory.
All of Aeroflot’s Russian-built planes will be emblazoned with the Victory livery as part of the Company’s commemorations of this landmark date. The key elements of the design are a white dove on a blue background and a ribbon of the Order of St George.
Aeroflot is preparing an extensive slate of events to mark the Anniversary. The centrepiece is the annual programme of free tickets for military veterans and those injured during the Great Patriotic War, as well as those accompanying them, on routes to cities that played a key role during the War from 3-12 May. Citizens of other former Soviet countries will also be eligible. This year Aeroflot will for the first time cover all travel costs including tickets and taxes, while the cap on the total number of tickets available has also been lifted. The programme covers flights operated under the SU code by Aeroflot Group on domestic routes and flights to selected destinations across Europe and the CIS.
Aeroflot was the first Russian airline to introduce free tickets for war veterans as part of the Victory Day celebrations. In 2014 Aeroflot carried about 3,600 passengers under the programme, which has benefited about 50,000 passengers in its 15-year history.
Aeroflot also plans to create a section of its website dedicated to the wartime contribution of civil aviation. The Aeroflot Museum at Sheremetyevo International Airport will also host an exhibition entitled «The Unknown Soldier» to showcase materials from the family archives of Aeroflot employees. The airline will also plant a number of trees along the Aeroflot Walk of Fame.
Top Copyright Photo: OSDU/AirlinersGallery.com. RA-89047 arrives at Moscow (Sheremetyevo) yesterday (March 23). All other photos by Aeroflot.
Aeroflot Russian Airlines (Moscow) and Sukhoi Civil Aircraft (SCA) have signed an agreement for an additional 20 of the latest Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft.
The aircraft seat 87 passengers in a dual-class configuration (12 seats in business and 75 in economy) and with a flight range of 2,400 km.
The new aircraft will fly on short-haul domestic routes operated by Aeroflot Group subsidiaries.
The SSJ-100 received certification from the Aviation Register of the Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC AR) in January 2011.
The new agreement is in addition to an existing contract for 30 SSJ-100s, and will bring Aeroflot Group’s fleet of SSJ-100s to a total of 50 aircraft by 2017.
Copyright Photo: OSDU/AirlinersGallery.com. Sukhoi Superjet 100-95B RA-89008 (msn 95016) prepares to land back at the Sheremetyevo Airport base in Moscow.
Aeroflot Russian Airlines (Moscow-Sheremetyevo) has suspended the Moscow-Kharkiv and Moscow-Dnepropetrovsk routes following actions by the Ukraine government. Both cities are located in the Ukraine. The Russian airline issued this statement:
Ukraine’s State Aviation Administration without giving a reason has banned Russian airlines flights on the route Moscow – Kharkiv and Moscow – Dnepropetrovsk. The affected airlines are Aeroflot, Transaero, UTair, UTair-Ukraine and Dniproavia. Thus the permission to perform operations on these routes issued by Ukraine’s State Aviation Administration on October 24, 2014 and November 17, 2014 has been withdrawn.
Due to this fact Aeroflot was forced to cancel a previously scheduled winter season 2014/15 flights:
Aeroflot Russian Airlines (Moscow) has announced its schedule changes for its winter schedule valid until March 28, 2015:
During winter season 2014/2015 Aeroflot plans to fly to 52 countries including 8 CIS countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Uzbekistan and Ukraine).
Aeroflot will operate its own flights to 121 destinations — 69 of which are abroad — including 46 destinations in Europe, 13 in Asia, 5 in the USA, 5 in the Middle East and Africa. The winter CIS network covers 11 destinations: Baku, Bishkek, Yerevan, Minsk, Tashkent, Kiev, Dnepropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Odessa, Karaganda, Chisinau.
Starting from February 1, 2015 Aeroflot will add two new destinations, twice daily to the Russian cities of Arkhangelsk and Murmansk.
During the winter season Aeroflot will fly daily to Tbilisi and Chisinau.
Aeroflot will continue operating on the routes which were opened last summer season: Moscow — Karaganda, Moscow — Rostov-on-Don, Moscow — Novy Urengoy.
Aeroflot will also introduce additional frequencies on already existing routes from Moscow to the following destinations (flights per week): Saint Petersburg (from 98 to 108), Krasnodar (from 39 to 48), Mineralnye Vody (from 7 to 21), Orenburg (from 7 to 14), Simferopol (from 14 to 35), Ekaterinburg (from 35 to 42), Volgograd (from 21 to 28), Irkutsk (from 10 to 21), Novosibirsk (from 21 to 28), Tyumen (from 14 to 21), Rostov-on-Don (from 7 to 21), Yakutsk (from 5 to 6), Minsk (from 21 to 28), Vilnius (from 7 to 14), Dusseldorf (from 21 to 28), Bucharest (from 4 to 7), Amsterdam (from 14 to 21), Helsinki (from 7 to 14), Bangkok (from 10 to 14), Los-Angeles (from 6 to 7), Miami (from 3 to 4).
Instead of the flights to Gelendzik, Heraklion, Dubrovnik and Split operated only during the summer season, Aeroflot will fly to Phuket. Two traditional summer destinations — Thessaloniki and Tivat — will become year-round for the first time.
In total Aeroflot Group and its code sharing partners will fly to 333 unique destinations in 68 countries including Russia.
In other news, Aeroflot is transferring the assets of grounded Dobrolet (2nd) (Moscow) to its new subsidiary called Byudzhetny Perevozchik, (translated as Budgetary Carrier).
The new subsidiary will operate low fare Boeing 737-800 flights from Moscow (Sheremetyevo) to Belgorod, Kazan, Surgut, Perm, Yekaterinburg, Ufa, Samara, Volgograd and Tyumen according to Russian News.
Czech Airlines-CSA (Prague) has been forced to lay off 280 staff members, a third of its workforce, including 70 pilots due to slumping traffic. The company is restructuring to meet the current conditions. As part of this restructuring, the company is grounding or leasing out its six Airbus A320s as it attempts to reduce its fleet according to Reuters. Tragically the airline has put its emphasis on serving destinations in eastern Europe. The current on-going conflict in the eastern Ukraine has translated to a drop in traffic.
The holding company of the flag carrier issued this statement:
The new Czech Aeroholding management reviewed in detail the economic results of all companies incorporated in the Czech Aeroholding Group, including Czech Airlines, upon its appointment at the turn of June and July 2014. The second largest shareholder, Korean Air, was then informed about the situation in Czech Airlines, too. Together, they agreed to draft a restructuring plan with the goal of keeping the current revenue upon decreased costs. This plan was unanimously approved by all shareholders in a General Meeting at the beginning of September. Several restructuring measures, predominantly in the revenue area such as a new one-way tickets concept, flight schedule changes and changes to the company’s transport network (including those in the Russian market), have already brought first results. For the first time in several years, Czech Airlines will record a net operational profit for the entire summer season. Concurrent with the restructuring plan, negotiations among all shareholder regarding investments into Czech Airlines are currently in progress. Upon their closing, Czech Aeroholding and all shareholders will inform the general public of their future steps in regards to Czech Airlines.
Copyright Photo: OSDU/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A320-214 OK-MEI (msn 3060) in the special “Prague Love You – Prague Airport” arrives at Moscow (Sheremetyevo) from Prague.
Estonian Air (Tallinn) reported a first half net loss of €5 million ($6.6 million), down from a net loss of €6.1 million ($8.0 million) in the same period a year ago.
The airline issued this full financial statement:
Despite tougher competition Estonian Air improved its half year net result by 18%. In the first half of 2014, Estonian Air’s revenue amounted to EUR 32.9 million, which is 8% less compared to the same period last year but net result of the company improved by 18%, which amounted to EUR 5.0 million loss.
During the first six months, Estonian Air carried 260 thousand passengers, of which 251 thousand on regular flights. This is 8% less than in the same period last year but less than the decrease in roundtrips (10%) in the same period 2013.
“The result of the second quarter is on the same level as in the same period last year, but nevertheless we expected to see more positive results,” said Jan Palmér, CEO of Estonian Air. “During the second quarter Estonian Air has continued to perform in line with the restructuring plan, but in addition we must now intensify measures in response to harsher market. Competition in Tallinn airport has become tougher as new carriers have entered the market and we have been influenced by continuing uncertain situation in Ukraine resulting in lower passenger volumes on Kiev route and lower transit passengers volumes flying from Europe to Russia,” continued Palmér.
The pressure on airlines’ yield has increased in the whole Europe, forcing airlines to adapt to the changing market conditions. “In the first half of the year, the total number of passengers fell slightly behind our forecast. This is mainly due to less number of operated flights compared to last year, which is due to demanding market situation. However, in June and July we have seen the passenger volumes coming back. Positively surprising high demand for our summer offers and two more summer destinations helped us to turn the number of passengers into growth again,” added Palmer.
In addition to direct flights, Estonian Air is providing more than 280 destinations around the world together with partner airlines with minimum connecting time. For instance, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Amsterdam airports act as important hubs for connecting flights around the whole world.
Estonian Air, Estonia’s national carrier, is the biggest operator at Tallinn Airport. The airline flies regular routes to Stockholm, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Brussels, Oslo, Moscow, Munich, St Petersburg, Kiev, Vilnius, Trondheim and Bromma. In addition, from May to September, Estonian Air will fly to Nice and Split, from June to August to Paris and from June to 1st of November to Berlin. From December 2014 to March 2015, Estonian Air will add seasonal flights to Munich.
