newstodate.aero
Aug 05, 2014 (newstodate): Among other European carriers, Finnair is probably holding its breath over fears of a Russian retaliation after the EU sanctions grounding the operations by Aeroflot's low-cost arm, Dobrolet.
One coveted bargaining chip held by Russia is the traffic on air lanes over Siberia that enable European airlines to cut up to 4,000 km on flights to and from Asian destinations.
European airlines pay an estimated 300 mio dollars each year for these rights since the 70'ies when the transit traffic was first initiated. The money, however, is collected by Aeroflot that would suffer a similar loss if the transit flights were abolished or limited.
So far the issue of the Transsiberian overflights has not been raised officially by the Russian side but is aired by Russian media.
With its strong focus on the Asian strategy, Finnair is one airline that would be severely affected if the transit traffic was limited.
One coveted bargaining chip held by Russia is the traffic on air lanes over Siberia that enable European airlines to cut up to 4,000 km on flights to and from Asian destinations.
European airlines pay an estimated 300 mio dollars each year for these rights since the 70'ies when the transit traffic was first initiated. The money, however, is collected by Aeroflot that would suffer a similar loss if the transit flights were abolished or limited.
So far the issue of the Transsiberian overflights has not been raised officially by the Russian side but is aired by Russian media.
With its strong focus on the Asian strategy, Finnair is one airline that would be severely affected if the transit traffic was limited.