Airport, Baltic States – CIS, Latvia, LIVE RIGA, Tourism, Transport

AeroSvit on the route Kiev – Riga – Kiev will fly every day performing 7 direct flights per week. The flights will be operated by an "Embraer 145" aircraft. The duration of the flight will be one hour and 45 minutes, writes LETA.

Krisjanis Peters, chairman of the board of Riga International Airport, said: "The fact that already the fifth airline this year is commencing flights to Riga is the best tribute to the efforts made over a number of years to make Riga International Airport more competitive. Riga has become the busiest air traffic hub in the Baltic states with a growth potential in the North European region." 17 airlines operating direct traffic to 81 destinations testify not only to the capacity of Riga International Airport as an air transport centre, but also to the professionalism of the airport personnel and the high quality of services provided. "Clearly, it is also the result of the airport's new tariff policy, which is one of the most competitive and attractive among the airports of the European capitals," said Peters.

The destinations available from Riga open a wealth of travel opportunities to the population of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania that is our local market, and also boost the number of those transfer passengers who prefer to fly through Riga to Scandinavia, Southern Europe, Russia and the CIS countries, Peters said.

AeroSvit was founded in 1994 and now is the biggest air carrier in Ukraine. Currently AeroSvit is offering the richest choice of flight destinations from Ukraine. The airline operates on 60 international routes connecting Ukraine with capitals, business centers and health resorts in 29 countries, including Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Egypt, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Montenegro, Poland, Pakistan, Russia, Serbia, Sweden, Thailand, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the USA, and the United Arab Emirates.

AeroSvit also carries passengers to several administrative centers of Ukraine: Dnepropetrovsk, Doneck, Zaporozhe, Ivano-Frankovsk, Lvov, Odessa, Simferopol and Kharkov.

There are 17 "Boeing" airplanes in AeroSvit fleet. In the coming years AeroSvit is planning to renew and multiply its fleet almost 3.5 times.

The carrier intends by 2011 to start flying the new generation "Boeing 737-800 NG" – the medium and large long-haul aircraft.