Tuvike says Estonia should not invest in Air Baltic

Tallinn Airport CEO Riivo Tuvike told ERR that Estonia should not consider buying a stake in financially troubled Latvian airline Air Baltic, saying it is extremely difficult to operate a profitable aviation business in such a small region.

Tuvike said that even if Air Baltic disappeared from the market, this would not mean an interruption to Estonia’s air connections. He discussed the airline’s future, Tallinn Airport’s performance and development plans in an interview with Vikerraadio’s “Friday Interview” programme.

Tallinn Airport recorded its busiest-ever June and July. Passenger numbers in July were 19 percent higher than a year earlier, reaching 384,000.

Warsaw has become the most popular destination in recent months. Frankfurt, Riga and Helsinki also account for a large share of flights from Tallinn. Wizz Air has opened several new destinations, which Tuvike said had been well received.

He said direct destinations from Tallinn strongly influence where people choose to travel. While travellers previously tended to choose Italy and Western Europe, more are now heading towards Eastern Europe.

Tuvike attributed the growth in passenger numbers to the addition of new destinations and lower airfares. As flying has become less expensive, more people want to travel by air, creating further demand.

In 1991, during the transition to restored independence, Tallinn Airport handled 758,000 passengers. The figure fell to about 205,000 in 1992 after the Soviet Union ceased to shape the country’s air travel. Tuvike said the airport expects to handle 3.7 million to 3.8 million passengers this year.

He also said the initial closures of the Strait of Hormuz in the spring had a major impact not only on aviation fuel but on energy trade as a whole. At the time, he said, concerns were justified because a very large share of the world’s energy passed through the strait.