Pristina demand grows after Swiss restrictions eased

GLOBAL AVIATION NEWS

EU okays Alitalia successor

EU competition regulators have given the green light to a slimmed down successor to Alitalia and said the new state-owned airline was not liable for repaying 900 million euros in illegal state aid received by its predecessor. The approval of Italia Trasporto Aereo (ITA) will be greeted with relief in Rome, which has been negotiating for months to prevent the decision on the 900 million euros of loans from hindering the launch of the new airline. Alitalia is unlikely to repay that aid, plus interest, as the carrier's coffers are empty and money it may collect from the sale of assets is not expected to be enough. ITA will operate with less than half of Alitalia's fleet of aircraft and will only be allowed to take over limited parts of its predecessor's handling and maintenance businesses. Alitalia's brand and its loyalty programme will be sold in an open tender, said the European Commission, which oversees the EU's competition policy. The new carrier is due to start flying in place of Alitalia on October 15 and plans to employ only a small part of its predecessor's 11.000 total workforce under a new, less generous labour contract. The uncertainty over the future of thousands of workers has sparked protests. The Italian government has set aside a total of 3 billion euros for ITA, but the Commission only gave a green light to an initial 1.35 billion euros capital injection by Rome into the carrier over the next three years.
Reuters

Pristina demand grows after Swiss restrictions eased

NEWS FLASH

Pristina Airport has seen an increase in arrivals from Switzerland after authorities there ended mandatory quarantine requirements for entry from Kosovo. “On October 2, 3, 4 and 5 we had over 20.063 travellers on arrival and departure. Of those, 12.500 passengers, as well as 78 of the 146 flights were from Switzerland”, Pristina Airport’s spokeswoman, Valentina Gara, said. The number of flights between Switzerland and Kosovo is also growing. Chair Airlines is now flying up to three times per day between Zurich and Pristina. On the other hand, Enter Air is maintaining four weekly flights from Basel to Kosovo. “In the last few weeks, demand for a trip back home from Switzerland has once again grown. We are now trying to meet this pent-up demand as best as possible”, Leyla Ibrahimi, the CEO of tour operator Air Prishtina and minority shareholder of Chair Airlines, said. Switzerland is Kosovo's number one travel market. In 2019 it accounted for 37% of all passenger numbers at Pristina Airport.

Comments

Anonymous14:41
Unbelievable achievement by PRN...20 thousand passenger in 5 days!!
Would be interesting to check if Wizz increases flights to BSL/MLH
That said, Easy will fly daily to both GVA and BSL! Crazy!!
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