newstodate.aero
Feb 17, 2011 (newstodate): The Latvian ground handling company North Hub Services is doing great at its home base, Riga Airport.
The company launched handling services at Riga Airport on January 1, 2010, and has been growing steadily since.
-We have now attained some 70 percent of the handling business at the airport and that is more or less what could be hoped for, says Janis Balkens, North Hub Services CEO.
-We cannot grow much more at Riga as you will be in a lose-one/win-one situation when you get close to 75 percent of the market. And after all, that would place you too close to a dominant situation, which no-one wants.
-So growth is to be attained in other markets, and we are most satisfied with our operations at Helsinki Vantaa Airport since July 1, 2010, and doing well at Estonia's Tallinn Airport, providing airBaltic's self-handling since June 2010.
-Now the next target is Stockholm Arlanda from July 1, 2011 - slightly postponed from April 2011 due to technicalities with expiry dates of existing handling contracts by our coming airline customers.
-We are of course following developments at Estonia's Tallinn Airport very closely. The airport's annual passenger figures will hit the two-million mark either in 2011 or at least by 2012, and we will then be ideally positioned to launch full-scale handling services there as soon as possible, says Mr Balkens.
North Hub Services, with Janis Balkens as CEO, was established in 2009 by Baltijas Aviacijas Sistemas, owned by Bertolt Flick who is also the president, CEO and co-owner of the Latvian carrier airBaltic.
On April 12, 2010, the Turkish ground handling company HAVAS bought 50 percent of the shares in North Hub Services that now has around 500 staff.
The company launched handling services at Riga Airport on January 1, 2010, and has been growing steadily since.
-We have now attained some 70 percent of the handling business at the airport and that is more or less what could be hoped for, says Janis Balkens, North Hub Services CEO.
-We cannot grow much more at Riga as you will be in a lose-one/win-one situation when you get close to 75 percent of the market. And after all, that would place you too close to a dominant situation, which no-one wants.
-So growth is to be attained in other markets, and we are most satisfied with our operations at Helsinki Vantaa Airport since July 1, 2010, and doing well at Estonia's Tallinn Airport, providing airBaltic's self-handling since June 2010.
-Now the next target is Stockholm Arlanda from July 1, 2011 - slightly postponed from April 2011 due to technicalities with expiry dates of existing handling contracts by our coming airline customers.
-We are of course following developments at Estonia's Tallinn Airport very closely. The airport's annual passenger figures will hit the two-million mark either in 2011 or at least by 2012, and we will then be ideally positioned to launch full-scale handling services there as soon as possible, says Mr Balkens.
North Hub Services, with Janis Balkens as CEO, was established in 2009 by Baltijas Aviacijas Sistemas, owned by Bertolt Flick who is also the president, CEO and co-owner of the Latvian carrier airBaltic.
On April 12, 2010, the Turkish ground handling company HAVAS bought 50 percent of the shares in North Hub Services that now has around 500 staff.