Prague Airport Archives – Page 3 of 3

By 2035, Prague Airport should increase its capacity up to 23 million passengers per year.

This year it handles 17.7 million people, which is a year-on-year increase of 5.8%, although it is already facing capacity problems. According to Václav Řehoř, Chairman of the Czech Aeroholding Board of Director, ten per cent of the arrivals at Terminal 1 had to be declined this summer. Passenger numbers are growing continuously since 2013.

The requirements to increase the airport capacity are the construction of a parallel runway, the centralization of security controls and building new boarding sections D and E. Section D should be built at Terminal 2 by 2029 and section E by 2036.

Along with completing the parallel runway, it will be necessary to shut down the existing secondary runway. After the launch of the new track in about eight years, it is expected that night operations at the airport will be cancelled. The runway will only be used for take-offs. Upon commissioning, the airport’s capacity will increase to 250,000 per year.

The Minister of Transport, Vladimír Kremlík (ANO) added that by 2028, an electrified double-track railway line should lead to the airport and Kladno. It is planned to build several elevated junctions on the Prague ring road and the roads leading to the airport.

The journey from the centre of Prague to Václav Havel Airport in Ruzyně should take 25 minutes along the planned railway line. From the railway for nearly 40 billion crowns, which will also lead to Kladno, only part of the Negrelli viaduct is being elaborated.

The adjustment of the monorail and non-electrified line to Kladno with an annexe to Prague Airport has been under construction for years. The new connection should allow a ten-minute interval of trains going to the airport and Kladno.

As of Sunday, 27 October 2019, the winter flight schedule becomes effective. It will provide flights from Václav Havel Airport Prague to 121 destinations in 46 countries. New additions will include Lviv, Kharkiv, Chisinau, Florence, Beirut, Nur-Sultan and Keflavik. Altogether, Prague Airport will fly to fifteen new destinations during the winter season.

There will be 60 direct flights from Prague during the winter flight schedule, 13 of them are low-cost.

New destinations include Lviv, Kharkiv, Chisinau, Casablanca, Perm, Florence, Nur-Sultan, Stockholm – Skavsta, Bournemouth, Billund, Beirut, Keflavik, Malta, Odesa, and Venice – Treviso. This year, four airlines will newly operate their flights from Prague also in winter, including SCAT Airlines, SkyUp Airlines, Air Malta and Arkia Airlines.

“Czech passengers will benefit from these new opportunities for traveling abroad. In addition to new destinations in Eastern Europe, they can fly to places where Prague Airport traditionally has direct flights only in summer, such as Iceland or Malta,” says Václav Řehoř, the Chairman of the Prague Airport Board.

The busiest country with regard to the number of destinations, even in winter, is the UK, where 17 different destinations are offered, including all major international London airports, which are serviced by direct flights from Prague. The second busiest country is Italy (11 destinations), followed by Russia (10 destinations), Spain (9 destinations) and France (8 destinations).

Most flights in winter will fly to London (up to 93 flights per week, Moscow (up to 70 flights per week), Amsterdam (up to 51 flights per week), and Warsaw (49 per week).

Prague Airport recorded a 6% increase in the number of checked-in passengers from July to September 2019, a total of 5,812,597 travelers.

August was the busiest month, while Prague Airport recorded the highest year-on-year increase in the number of passengers in September. Most passengers in this period were heading to London, the busiest destination followed by Moscow and Paris. As a holiday destination, most flights were to Antalya, Burgas, and Barcelona.

The number of checked-in passengers on flights to holiday destinations also increased, a total of 1,685,727 passengers, which is 8.8% more than last year.

Prague Airport also saw an increase in the number of passengers handled on flights to a total of 15 long-distance destinations. From July to September, 464,969 passengers used these routes, 12% more than last year, and the most significant increase was recorded by routes to North America by 28.7%.

While the number of passengers handled increased year-on-year at Prague Airport, in the case of air movements, the airport experienced the opposite. The most significant decline was recorded in August by -1.5%. In July, August, and September, the number of air movements dropped by 1.0% year-on-year.

The airport’s excellent operating results are due to newly opened air connections, increasing flights to existing destinations and continually expanding the capacity on existing routes.

During the winter season, Czech Airlines will increase frequencies on flights to Kiev and Moscow. Flights to the capital of Ukraine will now operate up to eight times a week, while Sheremetyevo International Airport in Moscow will be served three times a day.

Czech Airlines will also extend several summer routes into the winter season. Its winter schedule will thus feature flights to Beirut and Odessa, which will operate at least two times a week, and a connection to Keflavík, Iceland, now with a stopover in Copenhagen, which will be available to passengers daily.

Moreover, capacity on three direct routes operated by Czech Airlines will be increased. Beginning at the end of October, selected flights to Budapest and all flights to Düsseldorf will be serviced by larger aircraft, namely Airbus A319 or Boeing 737, replacing the ART turboprop aircraft currently in service.

Smartwings is also increasing the number of flights it operates in its winter schedule. The route between Prague and Rostov-on-Don will now be served three times a week. In addition, Smartwings will operate more flights on the route to St. Petersburg, which will be available every day from the start of the winter schedule, and, as usual, relaunch service to Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Prague has been discussing how to improve public transport to the airport for many years. Passengers who do not drive their own vehicles can now use buses of line 119, or taxi.

There has been much talk about the construction of the railroad track right up to the terminals or the extension of the metro, but overall everything is overtaken by another means of transport. The City of Prague announced that the 119 buses will be replaced the large-capacity electric buses in 2023.

They should relieve the current onslaught as they offer much greater capacity, as well as relieve the environment.

“The priority for us is still the fast-track to the airport, which is an investment of the Railway Infrastructure Administration and we are working intensively on it. However, due to the size of the building, this is the first solution for 2028. We decided to make it easier for passengers as soon as possible,” said Deputy Mayor of Transport Adam Scheinherr.

The result should be the electrification of route 119, for which Prague plans to purchase a total of 20 large-capacity three-cell battery-electric buses. “They will be 25 meters in length, which will greatly improve passenger comfort, make transportation easier by avoiding the adding of more bus connections while reducing exhaust emissions to zero,” adds Scheinherr.

The electrified line will, therefore, be built on the route from Nádraží Veleslavín to Václav Havel Airport, however, the trolleys that will be powered by the electric buses will not be all the way. Partial trolleybuses should be deployed, which can run part of the route without trolley lines only on batteries.

The total investment in electrification is expected to cost almost 900 million crowns, with the most going to battery buses.

In addition, Prague wants to take advantage of the synergies within the tram power network when constructing the electrified line. Although electric buses should not only be a temporary solution before the railway line is built at the airport, it will also find use elsewhere.

The infrastructure will also be used to extend the tram line from Divoká Šárka to Dědina, and Prague plans to deploy electric buses on the overloaded 112 line.

Within the next phase, the new trolleybuses are intended to relieve passengers primarily from the airport (because the line 119 today runs every 3-5 minutes, and the total number of connections in one direction is up to 250 daily, which at times it is overloaded). Since it makes no sense to further shorten the interval, Prague decided to invest in larger electric buses.

Prague Airport has opened the 14 room AeroRooms Hotel, designed for both connecting passengers and clients who need short-term accommodation near the terminals.

The new hotel replaces Rest&Fun Center, which offered eight rooms exclusively for passengers with connecting flights. At the same time, Prague Airport is gradually renovating airport lounges to double their capacities and increase passenger comfort.

“Through our new AeroRooms Hotel project, we are responding to the continuously growing number of passengers and changing composition of potential customers. Our hotel is primarily to expand the airport’s accommodation capacities, increase their quality, and make them available to greater numbers of passengers,” said Jiří Petržilka, executive director of the non-aviation business of Prague Airport.

Prague Airport has invested approximately 14 million CZK into AeroRooms hotel, primarily into extensive construction and technical modifications. Their purpose was not only to increase the hotel’s capacity and establish access from the airport’s public zone, but also to ensure strict safety standards associated with the hotel’s operation directly at the terminal of a large international airport.

Hotel rates start at CZK 1,999 (approx.77 EUR) per night per room. The hotel is open non-stop.

In addition to the newly opened AeroRooms hotel, Prague Airport is also expanding its premium lounge services. In October 2019, the airport will start the renovation of Erste Premier Lounge at Terminal 2, which will be completed in time for the next summer season. The Mastercard Lounge at Terminal 1 will then be expanded. The expansion work will boost the capacity of each lounge by almost 100%.

“Passengers’ demand for lounges experience has been growing over the years. As with other airport infrastructures, however, our lounges are reaching their maximum capacities. These modifications will enable us to increase their capacities with a reserve large enough for the next seven years, when our expanded Terminal 2 will be put into operation, offering new premises for our airport’s premium services,” said Petržilka.

The new service of AeroRooms, as well as more comfortable and spacious airport lounges with their increased capacity, will contribute to meeting the strategic objective of Prague Airport in the non-aviation business, i.e. the continuously growing share of our non-aviation trade revenues in the total revenues of Prague Airport.

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Analysing data provided by Taxi-Calculator.com, the average price to travel from the city centre to the main airport (or vice versa) for 14 European capital cities has been calculated, taking into consideration price per mile, base fares, and distance*.

Which cities are the cheapest?
For the cheapest airport transfer, results show that Lisbon is the place to be – for a 5.4km journey from the city’s airport to the centre will cost travellers a mere 5.79 euros. In second place is Ankara – Turkey’s capital will set you back only 13.64 euros for a 26.5km journey.

Meanwhile, the remaining top countries for cheap travel are as follows: Madrid (18.56 euros), Berlin (20.10 euros), Prague (21.31 euros), Vienna (23.75 euros) and Athens (26.45 euros).

Which cities are the most expensive?
Taxi2Airport can reveal that, at a whopping 52.07 euros (20.8km journey), Amsterdam tops the table as the most expensive capital city to reach, from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. The next most expensive city is, less surprisingly, London at 50.60 euros for 25.6km – dropping you off at London Heathrow. In third place is Stockholm. The city’s low fares of 1.13 euros (and 4.22 euros base fee) are unfortunately cancelled out by the distance required to reach its airport, Stockholm Arlanda Airport (40.3km) – as such, the overall total becomes 49.76 euros.

Finally, the remaining expensive cities are: Bern (43.84 euros), Paris (42.73 euros), Rome (36 euros) and Brussels (26.88 euros).

Results include:

Lisbon’s airport transfers are the cheapest, costing only 5.79 euros.
Amsterdam is the most expensive city – to reach Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and or back costs a shocking 52.07 euros.
Costing 50.60 euros to reach Heathrow and or back, London has the second most expensive taxi fare.
Stockholm has the third most expensive taxi services, costing 49.76 euros.

At least three Russian airlines have canceled most of their Tuesday flights to the Czech Republic over what they said was the country’s decision to revoke flight permissions to and from Prague.

The flagship carrier Aeroflot and Ural Airlines are the only Russian airlines that perform direct flights to and from Prague. Czech Airlines performs return flights to and from Moscow twice a day.

“Because of the decision by the Czech Republic’s aviation authorities to revoke earlier issued permits for Moscow-Prague-Moscow flights, Aeroflot has to cancel following flights: SU2010/2011, SU2014/2015, SU2016/2017 and SU2018/2019, scheduled for 2 July”, the airline said in a statement.

At the same time, flights SU2012/2013 and SU2024/2025 will be carried out as scheduled, according to Aeroflot.

Ural Airlines also “indefinitely” canceled flights to Prague from Moscow and Yekaterinburg on Tuesday, then said its Yekaterinburg-Prague flights had been restored.

Aeroflot-owned Pobeda Airlines canceled flights from Moscow to the Czech spa town of Karlovy Vary.

The Czech Republic “used the parity rule” and revoked Russia’s permits because it was unhappy with terms offered to Czech Airlines for flights going over Siberia from Prague to Seoul, the country’s transport ministry said.

No statement has been issued by Aeroflot regarding the decision by the Czech aviation authorities. According to the Russia-based airline, the company will closely monitor the situation and any affected passengers will be updated on new developments.

Author: red

Czech Airlines has resumed flights from Prague to Odesa from May 30, 2019, according to a posting on the Facebook page of the Odesa airport.

The flights will be operated up to four times a week. In particular, from Odesa from May 30 to June 17 the plane will depart on Tuesdays and Fridays, from June 18 to July 1 – also on Sundays, from July 2 – on Thursdays.

Departure time is 5:00 local time. From Prague, from May 30 to June 16, the flight will be operated on Mondays and Thursdays, from June 17 flights on Saturdays will also be added, and from July 1 – on Wednesdays. Departure time is 22:45 local time.

The cost of a one-way ticket starts from UAH 2,700. Czech Airlines is the main airline of the Czech Republic and operates flights from Prague to the main destinations in Europe and Asia.

Author: red

Korean Air is celebrating 15 years since the launch of regular flights between Prague and Seoul. The route between Prague and Seoul is now serviced during the winter season by the latest Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner with a capacity of 269 seats, and during the summer schedule a Boeing 747-8i with a capacity of 368 seats is used. Korean Air is one of the few airlines to offer Prague first class.

The inaugural flight landed in Prague on May 15, 2004. At that time, an Airbus A330-200 with 257 seats in two travel classes was used. Over the years on the Prague route, Korean Air has also used an Airbus A330-200, Airbus A330-300, Boeing 777-200ER, Boeing 777-300ER and Boeing 747-400. In March 2014, the Airbus A380 was deployed on the line.

“The direct route from Prague to Seoul is one of the most important long-haul connections from Václav Havel Airport Prague, and also the oldest. Over 15 years of operation, more than 1.3 million passengers have flown with Korean Air on this route, and over 5,600 departures and landings by this carrier have taken place in Prague,” Václav Řehoř, Chairman Board of Directors of Prague Airport, said in a press release.

“As Prague is popular in South Korea, we can expect that the number of tourists from this country will continue to rise in the coming years. That is why I am pleased that in March, in cooperation with the Foreign Police of the Czech Republic, Korean Air and the Korean Embassy, we managed to put in place a new e-gate passport check-in system to make it easier for Korean tourists to enter the Czech Republic,” he added.

Yeong Ho Choe, Korean Air Regional Manager for the Czech Republic, said the airline was “very proud” to celebrate two important milestones this year: 50 years since Korean Air was founded and 15 years from direct flights to Prague.

“The launch of the Prague line significantly contributed to the development of tourism and trade between South Korea and the Czech Republic, and I firmly believe that this trend will continue in the coming years. Prague is an important destination for Korean Air, as evidenced by the fact that we are deploying state-of-the-art aircraft from our fleet,” Yeong Ho Choe added.

A celebration of the anniversary took place at Prague Airport. In addition to regional manager Yeong Ho Choe, it was attended by J.E. Seoung-Hyun Moon, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the Czech Republic, and Martin Kučera, Executive Director of Air Traffic at Prague Airport.

The flights between Prague and Seoul currently are scheduled on Monday, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.

Korean Air was founded in 1969. It transported more than 26 million passengers in 2018 and is one of the top 20 global airlines. Korean Air operates over 460 flights a day to 124 destinations in 44 countries on five continents. It has a modern fleet of 167 aircraft and employs more than 20,000 employees worldwide.

Korean Air’s main base is the newly opened Terminal 2 at Incheon International Airport in South Korea.

Korean Air is a founding member of the Sky Team alliance. In May 2018, Korean Air launched a joint venture partnership with Delta Air Lines in the Transpacific market.

Author: Raymond Johnston

Picture: Prague Airport

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