Two new destinations to be opened from Riga Airport in the winter season

28/10/2011

The winter flight schedule at Riga International Airport will list two new destinations – to Leeds (Bradford) and Eindhoven. To several other destinations – Kiev, Munich, Warsaw, Helsinki etc. – the number of flights will be increased and by the end of the year the airport expects its passenger traffic to reach five million.

Already from 30 October the airline Ryanair will start flights to Leeds (Bradford) in the United Kingdom. Elina Hakkarainen, Ryanair Sales & Marketing Executive in Nordics & Baltics, said: “Ryanair is very pleased to open the new route from Riga to Leeds Bradford, which is our 6th route from Latvia to the UK. Leeds is the commercial and cultural capital of North England and a very popular city break destination. Leeds Bradford airport is also the ideal gateway to the Yorkshire region which features some of the country’s most beautiful landscapes. This winter Ryanair operates 15 low fares routes to/from Riga, offering our Latvian passengers an even greater choice when planning their winter holidays for the 2011/12 season.”

On 9 December the airline Wizz Air will open a new route to Eindhoven (the Netherlands). Balazs Varro, Wizz Air Corporate Communications Manager, said: "Wizz Air is happy to broaden its services from Riga Airport. Our new destination Eindhoven is a gate to an important European cultural and business region, including Amsterdam, Brussels and North-West Germany."

Finnair, too, will increase the number of flights in the winter season: 17 flights per week are scheduled to Helsinki. The airline Aeroflot will fly to Sheremetyevo (Moscow) twice a day and the Polish carrier LOT will operate 9 flights per week to Warsaw this winter.

The national carrier airBaltic also is planning to increase the flight frequency to several destinations – there will be three flights per day to Kiev, two flights per day to Munich and 11 flights weekly to Warsaw. On the other hand, there will be no flights in the winter season to Amman, Beirut, Dublin, Chisinau, Nice, Tartu and Venice.

„The number of passengers keeps growing also due to opening of new routes. Hence, before the end of this year we expect to welcome the five millionth passenger at Riga Airport,” said Arnis Luhse, Chairman of the Board of Riga International Airport.

It should be remembered that on 30 October, at the night from Saturday to Sunday the clocks in Latvia must be turned one hour back to the winter daylight saving time. In order to reach their destinations on time and without problems, the passengers are requested to check the departure time of their flights either on Riga Airport or the carrier’s website or by calling the airport enquiries on (+371) 29311187.