Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) on May 4 expanded its fleet with second long haul widebody Boeing 777-200ER plane. The press service of the airline reported that it was officially registered in Ukraine under the UR-GOB registration number.
Boeing 777-200ER aircraft accommodates 361 passengers in three-class seating configuration, i.e. Business Class, Premium Economy Class, and Economy Class. UIA expects to operate the UR-GOB aircraft under a contract with AerCap which envisages the delivery of two more Boeing 777-200ER in 2018.
“The aircraft is equipped with Panasonic Corporation individual IFE system. Every seat is equipped with personal screen with a vast content menu, including feature movies, TV shows, a variety of Ukrainian movies, movies for children and cartoons. The content is available in several languages, Ukrainian, English, Chinese, Russian, French, Hindi and other languages,” the UIA said.
Moreover, passengers will be able to track the aircraft in real-time mode by using the interactive touch-sensitive 3D-map with 3D globe image, 100 city guides, including 20 cities of Ukraine, Kids map – Animals App, and other information.
USB-units and electrical power sockets are installed in all cabins with Wi-Fi connectivity available during the flight.
The aircraft is equipped with Bruce Aerospace Sky Interior modern lighting system which is customized so that the lighting regime changes according to natural environment.
Two more Boeing 777 aircraft are scheduled to arrive in Q2 – Q3 2018.
Ukraine International Airlines (UIA, Kyiv), the country’s largest air carrier, has performed the first flight along the Kyiv-Delhi route.
According to an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent, the aircraft departed on May 1 at 20:50 Kyiv time and arrived at around 06:00 Indian time. The occupancy was about 100 passengers, while about 245 tickets were sold on the return flight.
The flight will be operated four times a week and soon, according to UIA Vice President for Commerce Serhiy Fomenko, five times a week.
Previously the company noted that flights from Kyiv will be on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. And return flights from Delhi will be on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday on board Boeing 767-300 aircraft with three classes of service – business, premium, and economy – to/from Delhi International Airport (Indira Gandhi International).
“Delhi will be the fifth long-haul route in the UIA network and the second point connecting Ukraine with the countries of the Indian subcontinent,” UIA Corporate Spokeswoman Yevhenia Satska said.
As reported, the minimum cost of a ticket in both directions, taking into account all fees and taxes, from Kyiv starts from UAH 14,849 (the price may vary depending on the hryvnia to U.S. dollar exchange rate fluctuations), from Delhi from $529.
PrJSC Ukraine International Airlines (UIA, Kyiv), the leading air carrier of the country, in 2017 increased net income by 24%, or UAH 4.273 billion, to UAH 22.103 billion, according to a company annual report in the information disclosure system of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission. According to him, net loss coincided with the earlier announced preliminary indicator of UAH 304.51 million against UAH 387.89 million net profit in 2016.
Gross profit last year fell by 9.7%, to UAH 1.699 billion, while operating loss amounted to UAH 638.09 million against an operating profit of UAH 31.21 million a year earlier. The report reads that last year the cost of fixed assets rose by 28.8%, to UAH 21.2 billion, in particular leased assets by 28.6%, to UAH 20.46 billion. The value of its net assets slightly decreased from “minus” UAH 2.26 billion to “minus” UAH 2.54 billion. Total liabilities at the end of last year amounted to UAH 954.4 million, including two bank loans for UAH 607.8 million with maturity in 2016 and free cash in the amount of UAH 260.9 million, declining by 14.6% over the year.
According to the report, Cypriot-based Ontobet Promotions Limited owns 25.8373% of the company shares, but the same company through the “connection” scheme with the participation of Capital Investment Project and Investment Projects Management (both based at the same address in Kyiv) controls the remaining 74.1627%.
Italy’s low cost Ernest Airlines from June 22, 2018 will start servicing the Kyiv-Bologna flight along with flights to Milan and Naples from the Sikorsky Kyiv international airport (Zhuliany). The press service of the airport reported that the argument in favor of Bologna is proximity to the sea. In addition, it is convenient to take a high-speed train from Bologna to Florence, Verona, Milan, Padova, Mantua, Vicenza and Rome.
The flights will be serviced on Saturdays and Sundays by Airbus A319 (141 seats) and A320 (180 seats). The fare starts from EUR 49.
“Ukraine is a very important market for our airline. We get a lot of requests from Italian passengers residing in Italy to increase the number of flights a week and open new destinations. For example, Bologna–Kyiv is one of the routes that is not yet available. It is important not only for immigrants living in this area, but also for all Ukrainians who want to spend their holidays on the Adriatic coast,” Ernest Airlines Chief Commercial Officer Ilza Xhelo said.
