Administration not planning on increasing number of flights to Saaremaa

The first NyxAir flight from Tallinn to Kuressaare.
The first NyxAir flight from Tallinn to Kuressaare. Source: Margus Muld/ERR

The Transport Administration is not planning on increasing the number of flights between Kuressaare and Tallinn, although Saaremaa entrepreneurs have expressed their desire to have more flights available.

"In case of high demand, flights have been added in the past and that practice is set to continue," Transport Administration public transport department chief Kirke Williamson said.

The administration official said there are no plans to increase the number of flights between the island and the capital city.

Daily Saarte Hääl (link in Estonian) wrote on Tuesday that the Saaremaa Entrepreneurs Association would like for there to be flights around noon three times a week to go with the already existing morning and evening flights.

At the same time, Saaremaa municipality government does not consider increasing the number of flights too necessary an issue, but it has asked the Transport Administration to add five flights throughout the year: for Midsummer's celebrations, the Saaremaa Opera Festival, the Kuressaare Maritime Festival, Saaremaa Rally and Christmas, the daily reported.

Williamson noted that there are agreements to service 626 flights next year, which will be accompanied by additional flights, if necessary. "In general, additional flights are serviced if the local municipality submits an application," she noted.

NyxAir's regional airliner ATR 42-500, which seats 48 passengers, will begin flying between Tallinn and Kuressaare in the upcoming year. The price for one flight for the company is €5,215.

The average capacity for flights between Saaremaa and Tallinn this year was 46 percent, a total of 25,242 people flew between the island and the capital city.

As of Tallinn Airport's flight schedule, there will be at least two return trips on working days, one of them in the morning and one in the evening. There are three return trips on Fridays and one each on Saturday and Sunday.

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Editor: Kristjan Kallaste

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