Special: Aeroflot restores Soviet-period routes at property amid closed borders

By Gleb Stolyarov and Katya Golubkova

ST PETERSBURG, Russia (Reuters) – Russia’s prime airline Aeroflot is restoring Soviet-period routes hoping that direct flights which bypass standard hubs support enhance traffic amid shut borders, CEO Mikhail Poluboyarinov told Reuters.

Like numerous other airways globally, Aeroflot gained a dollars injection from the authorities, its controlling shareholder, last calendar year to help it via the pandemic.

The company is now conversing to the governing administration about issuing point out-assured debt, Poluboyarinov said in an job interview, and is including new domestic routes so persons can fly concerning cities such as resorts staying away from hubs this sort of as Moscow.

“We produced big techniques to adjust our route community. Aeroflot refreshed Soviet practise, its Soviet community… practically all the fleet is now fast paced,” he claimed.

Over 80% of Aeroflot’s seats are now taken while Pobeda, its very low-price device, has a 98-99% load variable.

Irrespective of setting up to get better from previous year when Aeroflot missing a lot more than 50 percent of its visitors and fell to a 123.2 billion rouble ($1.7 billion) reduction, Poluboyarinov does not be expecting its passenger traffic to return to pre-pandemic concentrations prior to 2024.

“Even if we get all permissions, who understands how many men and women would fly? The pandemic is nonetheless there. The re-opening of intercontinental flights depends on collective immunity… Vaccines should be mutually permitted,” he said.

Aeroflot, which operates 334 passenger planes, like Boeing and Airbus, is slightly delaying the shipping of new jets it purchased prior to the pandemic, Poluboyarinov claimed, dealing with no penalties as “everyone accepts and understands” the existing instances.

($1 = 72.6375 roubles)

(Reporting by Gleb Stolyarov and Katya Golubkova enhancing by Jason Neely)