Low-cost airline Germanwings commences operations in Latvia

27/04/2009

Today, May 6, a special reception was hosted for an aircraft at Riga Airport in honour of the commencement of regular flights between Riga and Cologne which are operated by German airline Germanwings. The airport’s fire engines greeted the incoming plane, "christening" it with jets of water.

The airline is operating direct flights to Cologne three times a week from May 2 – on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. Flight times are two hours and twenty minutes. All Germanwings flights are operated deploying Airbus A319 aircraft.

“More and more people in Europe are choosing to travel using airlines that can provide quick, comfortable and financially advantageous flights. To meet the growing demand for flights to German cities, this year we have commenced operations in Latvia launching a new flight route between Cologne and Riga,” explains Germanwings representative Andreas Engels.

“The airport is continually expanding its number of direct flight destinations. This means new tourism and business opportunities both for Latvian residents and citizens from other countries. Both the increase in the number of direct flight destinations and the growth in the number of aviation service providers are vital to the development of the airport,” points out SJSC Riga International Airport’s Chairman of the Board, Krišjānis Peters.

Among the dignitaries honouring the reception with their presence were German Ambassador to Latvia, Eberhard Schuppius, SJSC Riga International Airport’s Chairman of the Board, Krišjānis Peters; Board Member and Vice-President, Jānis Baļķens; and the Germanwings airline’s representative, Andreas Engel.

Germanwings is a German low-cost aviation company founded in 2002 whose 100% shareholder is Eurowings Luftverkehrs AG. The airline is based at Cologne Bonn Airport and its fleet consists of A319 aircraft. During 2007, the airline transported more than 8 million passengers and its turnover reached 630 million euros. Germanwings operates flights to more than 60 cities across Europe.