newstodate.aero
May 15, 2014 (newstodate): As a network carrier, the Latvian airline airBaltic is constantly adjusting to even slight changes in the markets.
-The current conflict between Russia and Ukraine has had a deep impact on airBaltic. Almost overnight, demand for air traffic on specific routes to destinations in these areas dropped, causing us to act flexibly at ultra-short notice, says Janis Vanags, airBaltic VP Corporate Communications.
-Our system builds on transfer traffic through our hub at Riga Airport, and if turbulence occurs in one market it will immediately have a deep impact on the entire system, as is indeed the case with Russia/Ukraine.
-Russia remains a most important market for airBaltic, generating large volumes of transfer traffic through Riga Airport. But under the current circumstances we had to close down several routes into this region at practically no notice, identifying instead other options for allocation of traffic and capacity to compensate for the shortfall.
-We have therefore opened a number of seasonal routes to new destinations around, but it is of course a challenge to manage a network replacing one major driver with several smaller markets to sustain the balance in transfer traffic through our hub.
-So far we have managed to allocate all aircraft capacity within this adjusted network, but should we end up with excess aircraft capacity it will of course be offered in the ad-hoc and ACMI market, says Mr Vanags.
-The current conflict between Russia and Ukraine has had a deep impact on airBaltic. Almost overnight, demand for air traffic on specific routes to destinations in these areas dropped, causing us to act flexibly at ultra-short notice, says Janis Vanags, airBaltic VP Corporate Communications.
-Our system builds on transfer traffic through our hub at Riga Airport, and if turbulence occurs in one market it will immediately have a deep impact on the entire system, as is indeed the case with Russia/Ukraine.
-Russia remains a most important market for airBaltic, generating large volumes of transfer traffic through Riga Airport. But under the current circumstances we had to close down several routes into this region at practically no notice, identifying instead other options for allocation of traffic and capacity to compensate for the shortfall.
-We have therefore opened a number of seasonal routes to new destinations around, but it is of course a challenge to manage a network replacing one major driver with several smaller markets to sustain the balance in transfer traffic through our hub.
-So far we have managed to allocate all aircraft capacity within this adjusted network, but should we end up with excess aircraft capacity it will of course be offered in the ad-hoc and ACMI market, says Mr Vanags.