Air Baltic to cut 11 Tallinn routes next summer

Air Baltic will cancel 11 direct routes from Tallinn next summer, ERR reported, reducing the airline’s Tallinn network from 24 destinations this summer to 13 in 2027.

From the end of March through the end of October 2027, the airline plans to fly directly from Tallinn to Riga up to five times a day, Amsterdam twice a day, Vilnius 10 times a week, Paris and Munich five times a week, Berlin and Brussels four times a week, Malaga, London Gatwick and Vienna three times a week, and Barcelona, Heraklion and Nice twice a week.

Air Baltic does not plan to operate flights from Tallinn to Athens, Hamburg, Tirana, Billund, Burgas, Copenhagen, Malta, Oslo, Palma de Mallorca, Rhodes or Split during the 2027 summer season.

The airline said its revised schedule reflected an optimised, demand-based network strategy under its changed business plan. It said it would focus on markets with the highest demand and revenue potential, serving both business and leisure travellers.

The updated schedule also includes changes to the hub structure in Riga, with revised flight times and transfer periods. Air Baltic said passengers travelling to and from Estonia would have smoother connections through Riga to destinations across its wider network. During the 2027 summer season, the airline will offer up to five daily flights between Tallinn and Riga, providing access to 57 destinations served directly from Riga in Europe and beyond.

Other airlines may retain some connections

Eero Pärgmäe, a board member of Tallinn Airport, told ERR that connections to all of the affected destinations would not disappear despite the cancellations.

“Norwegian offers an alternative on the Oslo route, while SAS flies to Copenhagen. Wizz Air will continue serving the Tirana route. Negotiations with airlines for the 2027 summer season are still ongoing,” Pärgmäe said.

He added that replacing routes depended primarily on the destination, demand, and the availability of aircraft and suitable operating times. Replacing routes with lower demand or longer distances was more difficult because the same aircraft could operate several shorter and more profitable flights in Europe during the same period, he said.

Pärgmäe noted that Tallinn Airport is currently served by 16 scheduled airlines, in addition to charter airlines.

“Estonia’s air connections do not depend on just one airline. Tallinn has good connections to many major European hub airports, through which hundreds of destinations around the world can be reached with one transfer,” Pärgmäe said.

He added that passengers on the Air Baltic routes cancelled for 2027 accounted for only 4 percent of Tallinn Airport’s total annual passenger numbers, as most of the routes operated at low frequency and were seasonal.

Minister says changes are not a catastrophe

Infrastructure Minister Kuldar Leis said the changes were not a catastrophe and could, in some respects, be viewed as a positive development.

Speaking to Postimees, Leis said Air Baltic had been going through difficult times, making it positive that the airline was working to improve its efficiency.

“The most important thing is their overall condition and that they remain strong going forward. In that sense, this is the right development,” Leis said.