Latvian, Czech airlines closer to compromise

AirBaltic and Czech Airlines were unable to find a solution this week to their row over winter flight schedules, though a meeting on Oct. 29 brought the two sides closer to a compromise.

Though the winter flight season began on Sunday without a final agreement between the two companies, it was decided to extend Czech Airlines' summer schedule of nine flights per week for another fourteen days in order to satisfy passenger demand.

AirBaltic, meanwhile, has been given temporary permission from Czech authorities to fly to Prague three times a week. The license lasts until Nov. 10, according to an AirBaltic spokesman.

Representatives of both companies refrained from commenting on negotiations, though The Baltic Times learned that a concrete proposal is on the table that could suit both sides and that it has been sent to the airlines' head offices for approval.

Last week Latvia's Ministry of Transport, acting on behalf of AirBaltic, sent a proposal to the Czech Ministry of Transport and Communication whereby Czech Airlines would maintain its nine-flight-per-week schedule, but would not fly on the three days when AirBaltic made its runs to Prague.

Earlier AirBaltic, which intends to make three weekly fights to Prague, had proposed that Czech Airlines reduce its number of weekly flights from nine to six.

The Latvian ministry's proposal was rejected by Czech Airlines, calling the offer "unprofessional", and "total nonsense" from a commercial point of view.

"This is just a cosmetic move forward, mainly to show some kind of goodwill towards Czech Airlines in front of the public," Pavel Sarf, director of Czech Airlines in Estonia and Latvia, said last week.

If it were to accept the ministry's proposal, Czech Airlines, which uses Boeing 737s with seating capacity of 108 seats, would be forced to concentrate its nine weekly flights on four days.

AirBaltic, on the other hand, would fly on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, as it does now. According to Czech Airlines, Mondays and Fridays are the most lucrative days of the week as they attract the most business travelers.

Czech Airlines believes it is a victim of protectionism. AirBaltic, backed by the Latvian ministry, is trying to squeeze its competitor out of a profitable route that has seen passenger turnover increase by 24 percent, said Sarf.

Earlier this fall Austrian Airlines unilaterally dropped its Vienna-Riga route after having its weekly number of flights reduced from seven to four.

A large part of the problem, explained Sarf, is that AirBaltic's fleet consists of Fokkes-50, a propeller plane, and Avro RJ-70, both of which have small seating capacity and would therefore find it hard to compete with Czech Airlines' larger Boeings.

Still, though some differences in overall outlook remain, a compromise could be reached by the end of this week, said Sarf. Several points in the Air Service Agreement between the two countries will need to be clarified by the countries' transportation ministries, added Sarf.