Airport, EU – Baltic States, Good for Business, Latvia, Transport
International Internet Magazine. Baltic States news & analytics
Saturday, 20.04.2024, 09:53
SAS starts flights from Riga to Copenhagen
SAS Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft with 88 seats will go to
Copenhagen 12 times a week - twice daily midweek and one per day on weekends.
"For
years, Scandinavia has been one of the main business partners of Latvia. This
has contributed to the increase in the number of business trips between the two
countries. Therefore, as the Latvian economy is showing signs of recovery, SAS has made a strategic decision to
launch direct flights between Riga and Copenhagen," says Rūta Juciene, SAS Country Manager for Baltic States and Russia.
"Riga International Airport is happy that
our partner SAS has not only returned
to Riga, but also continues to expand its route network. Copenhagen - Riga
route offers new opportunities for business travellers not only for direct
flights to and from Riga, but also connectivity with other destinations around
the world," says Ilona Līce,
Chairman of the Board of Riga
International Airport.
To
celebrate the first flight, Riga
International Airport welcomed the airline with the traditional cake of the
new destination, which was made as a fairy tale book "The Little
Mermaid" by Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen. The Little Mermaid is
the symbol of Copenhagen. The statue of the Little Mermaid at the Langelinie
Quay in Copenhagen, created by Edvard Eriksen is among the most popular tourist
attractions already since 1913.
As reported
before, the summer flight season started on Sunday, 26 March, and this year 89 destinations
will be available to passengers travelling from Riga Airport. In addition to
the existing routes, airlines will offer 16 new destinations for both business
travel and leisure purposes.
Altogether
17 carriers will operate flights from Riga Airport in the summer season: airBaltic, Ryanair, WizzAir, Aeroflot, SAS, Finnair, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Lufthansa, LOT Polish Airlines, Utair,
Turkish Airlines, Ukraine International Airlines, RusLine, Uzbekistan Airways,
Belavia, Ellinair and Smartlynx
Airlines.
From the
beginning of the year to 20 March, Riga International Airport handled
979 739 passengers, which is 3.3% more than in the corresponding
period of 2016. In this year's first two months, the transit and transfer
passenger traffic grew by 14.2%, amounting to 26% of the total number of
passengers. London, Moscow and Frankfurt were the most popular destinations in
January and February.
Riga International Airport is the largest air traffic hub in
the Baltics. The 20 airlines operating at Riga Airport offer more than 60 destinations
in the winter season and more than 80 in the summer season. In 2016, Riga
Airport handled over 5.6 million passengers - nearly 45% of the entire Baltic
air passenger traffic.