Lithuanian operator carries over 5,000 passengers on island air routes in Estonia
Lithuanian carrier Transaviabaltika, wh won a contract to operate subsidized flights between Tallinn and Estonia's larger western islands, carried 5,411 passengers during the first almst two and a half months of operating the service, between June 20 and the end of August.
The company reported that the first two full months of regular service have encouraged Estonians to use domestic flights. In August, the number of passengers on the island routes had increased by 72 compared to July.
"Passengers have given us a warm reception and the number of passengers in August was on a slightly upward trend compared to July, for instance," said Rene Must, a representative for Transaviabaltika in Estonia.
Transaviabaltika carried a total of 2,302 passengers in July and 2,374 passengers in August. In june, 75 passengers flew on the domestic island routes after air service on them was resumed on June 20. The average load factor for August flights was 63 percent on flights to and from Saaremaa and 45 percent on flights to and from Hiiumaa.
Broken down by route, 1,325 passengers utilized air service between Tallinn and Kuressaare, the capital of Saaremaa, while 1,049 flew between Tallinn and the Hiiu capital of Kärdla.
In addition to regular services, Hiiu County Government ordered additional departures for Fridays and Saturdays during the summer in order to offer residents more convenient travel options.
The Lithuanian carrier operated altogether 44 flights on the Tallinn-Kärdla-Tallinn route and 130 flights on the Tallinn-Kuressaare-Tallinn route between June 20 and Aug. 31 of this year.
Editor: Editor: Aili Sarapik
Source: BNS
