Ryanair strikes deal to fly to Lithuania - Kaunas airport
Last Updated: 20-June-2005 10.50 Related News
VILNIUS (AFX) - Lithuania's Kaunas airport said it has concluded negotiations with Ryanair Holdings PLC to begin flying to the Baltic state.
"The negotiations are finished, but all the details are to be announced by representatives of the Irish company," Kestutis Cucenas, head of Kaunas airport said.
"Representatives of Ryanair will hold a briefing in Kaunas on Tuesday," he added.
In February, the Baltic state in February sent letters to eight low-cost European airlines inviting them to begin service to the Baltic state, but only received a reply from Ryanair.
Ryanair had expressed interest earlier in serving the Baltic state and had been in negotiations with Lithuanian officials.
But the talks failed because, according to Lithuanian officials, Ryanair was asking for a disguised fee to enter the Lithuanian market.
The transport ministry earlier said that it was ready to provide the necessary infrastructure for Kaunas airport and would organize public transport from Vilnius to the second-largest city, some 100 kilometers (60 miles) away.
Lithuania, which joined the European Union last last year saw a boost to airline passenger traffic this year.
Passenger numbers at Vilnius International Airport surged by 43 pct to 443,700 between January and May compared to the same period in 2004 and is expected to reach between 1.2 and 1.25 mln for the whole of 2005.
The number of flights served by the airport in January to May soared by 47 pct to reach 11,700 compared to the same period a year ago.
Kaunas airport to date mainly served cargo flights.
Cheers,
White Cap
