Airport, Estonia, EU – Baltic States, Legislation, Transport

"Global aviation is following a trend where long-haul flights of larger airlines are fed by regional airlines operating smaller-size aircraft," said Jan Palmér, the CEO of Estonian Air. "Estonian Air is looking for business possibilities in this area, and the subsidiary Nordic Flyways was established for that purpose."

According to Jan Palmér, during the last two years, Estonian Air has been cooperating with several airlines in Europe to offer available flight capacity.

"This kind of business model is widely used in the United States, but also in Central European and Nordic markets," continued Palmér. We see a potential to grow as an airline outside Estonia by serving as a long-term partner on shorter routes for larger airlines for which we have a suitable fleet."

After establishing Nordic Flyways, a 100% subsidiary of Estonia Air, as a first step the airline will apply for the required licenses and permissions to operate. "This process might take several months after which we will be ready to operate," added Palmér.

Estonia Air’s fleet consists of three 88-seater Bombardier CRJ900 and four 76-seater Embraer 170 aircraft.

Estonian Air, Estonia’s national carrier, is the largest operator at Tallinn Airport. The airline flies regular routes to Stockholm (Arlanda and Bromma), Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Brussels, Oslo, Moscow, St Petersburg, Kiev, Vilnius and Trondheim. From December 2014 to October 2015, Estonian Air operates seasonal flights to Munich. In addition, from March to October 2015, Estonian Air flies to Paris and Berlin, from April to October to Nice, Vienna and Split, and from April to November to Milan.