Ukraine International Airlines (UIA, Kyiv) reduces its flight program due to the need to optimize the company’s costs and return to the breakeven level.
The press service of UIA said, in particular, the airline stops operating flights to Amman (Jordan), Minsk (Belarus), and Riga (Latvia).
In addition, air traffic between Kyiv and Beijing (China) will be suspended, and the frequency of flights on the route Kyiv-Bangkok (Thailand) will be reduced to three weekly flights. It is also planned to reduce the implementation of duplicate night and day flights of UIA in eastern directions.
Such changes, according to UIA, will come into force on November 16, 2019 and will be valid “until the government of Ukraine develops an effective solution to create equal competitive conditions for Ukrainian and foreign carriers when flying over the territory of the Russian Federation.”
“UIA will offer passengers a change in the route of transportation if this is possible or a refund of the ticket if it is not possible to change the route or the passenger refuses the proposed alternative flight,” the company explained.
In addition, according to the airline, all UIA regular flights to Western European destinations will be operated during the daytime, departing from Kyiv between 09:30 and 10:30 and arriving in Kyiv between 17:30 and 18:30 local time.
Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) is ready to purchase medium-haul aircraft of Ukrainian production, provided they are launched into mass production, chairman of the supervisory board and co-owner of UIA Aron Mayberg has said in an interview with Mind.ua.
“UIA is the only airline in Ukraine that is actively and consistently developing domestic flights. It’s another matter that with the abolition of VAT, the company will be able to more actively increase the fleet for domestic flights. The preliminary plans for next year include replenishment of the fleet with at least two Embraer 195s, and if all will turn out favorably this figure may increase to four,” he said.
According to Mayberg, UIA is interested in buying medium-haul aircraft, the cost of transportation in which in terms of one seat will be $30-40. This will make it possible to sell tickets from $20-22 to $70-80 on a flight.
At the same time, he emphasized that mass production is a prerequisite for the purchase of Ukrainian aircraft by airlines.
“It’s not only a matter of cost. Aircraft need to be mass-produced, and not be made in three individual planes, for which it is not clear where to get pilots, spare parts and how to service them. Serial production is not developed in one day. This is a long and complex process. We really need a medium-haul aircraft with a capacity of 70-100 seats. If Ukraine makes such a successful aircraft, we would buy it,” Mayberg said.
Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) stopped direct regular flights between Kyiv and Almaty (Kazakhstan) on October 27, 2019, the airline’s press service has said.
“The decision to stop flights was made in connection with the unprofitability of the flight, caused by the need to bypass the territory of the Russian Federation. The ban on using the airspace of the Russian Federation for Ukrainian carriers led to a significant increase in the duration of the Kyiv-Almaty flight from five hours 20 minutes to six hours 35 minutes and, accordingly, additional costs, which it is not possible to cover even taking into account the effect of transit traffic,” the airline said.
At the same time, UIA maintains a code sharing agreement with Air Astana on routes to Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana) and Almaty. However, the company emphasizes that the schedule of code sharing flights between Kyiv and Almaty will allow retaining only part of transit capabilities, and the closure of its own flight violates the airline’s hub model and is a necessary measure designed to return the company to profitability.
“The decision is necessary and logical. It is connected with the difficulties in implementing the hub model that have been repeatedly voiced earlier. Losses exceeding $7 million do not allow us to continue operating a loss-making flight,” UIA President Yevhen Dykhne said.
In 2013-2019 UIA performed 2,120 flights on the Kyiv-Almaty-Kyiv route, carried 528,500 passengers and delivered 3,600 tonnes of cargo and mail, and also provided an additional transit flow of 380,000 passengers to Boryspil International Airport.
Ukraine International Airline (UIA) jointly with ATASS-Boryspil bus operator (earlier it carried passengers from the Boryspil international airport to the central railway station of Kyiv) launched intermodal transportation between Vinnytsia and Boryspil International Airport, the press service of the UIA has reported.
The UIA combined services connecting Vinnytsia and Kyiv are operated daily on Neoplan buses. Buses depart from Terminal D, Boryspil International Airport, at 20:25, and Terminal Square, Vinnytsia airport, at 03:00.
“UIA baggage and hand baggage allowance applies to this type of travelling. Meanwhile, passengers are not required to check-in their luggage for the bus service. Animals, bulky sporting equipment, non-folding wheelchairs, and weapons are not permitted for transportation by bus,” the press service said.
The press service said that this is the first time UIA launches an intermodal service. The intermodal service is successfully provided by some European airlines.
Ukraine International Airlines (UIA, Kyiv) could increase frequency of flights to Tbilisi and the company is not planning flights to Batumi, UIA Communications Director Yevhenia Satska has said.
“We conduct two daily flights to Tbilisi and are considering possibility of increasing their frequency. We are not planning flights to Batumi,” she said on June 26.
Satska noted that Tbilisi is important to UIA as it has a transit network effect.
“For passengers from Europe and Baltic countries a trip to Tbilisi through Kyiv is a very good model,” she said.
At the same time, Satska mentioned high airports fees in some Georgian airports that were transferred to concession.
“There is a problem which does not leave us [UIA] a chance to develop in Georgia: airport fees are rather high in Tbilisi and Batumi as long as these airports are in concession of foreign companies. These fees are much higher than in many European cities. Their reduction could automatically let us cut the cost of flight by the same amount,” she said.
Ukraine International Airlines (UIA, Kyiv) has announced the launch of a strategic partnership with the U.S. network of duty free shops Duty Free Americas (Florida), UIA Vice President Serhiy Fomenko and the vice president of Duty Free Americas have said at a press conference at Boryspil International Airport (Kyiv).
According to them, in particular, UIA and Duty Free Americas are launching a pre-order duty free service.
Fomenko said the pre-order duty free service will provide passengers with the opportunity to order duty free goods not at the airport but online, along with an invitation to check-in.
There will be 5,000 goods in the catalog. It will be available to passengers on the airline’s website in July 2019.
Duty Free Americas is a network of duty free shops in the United States, Mexico and Latin America. It was founded in 1983 and is based in Hollywood (Florida, the United States). Previously, the company was known as World Duty Free Americas, and was renamed Duty Free Americas in October 2001.
