UTair to start establishing air hub in eastern Russia in 2015
KRASNOYARSK. Feb 18 (Interfax) - UTair Aviation plans to begin establishing an air hub at an airport in Siberia or the Far East in 2015, the president of UTair Passenger Airlines, Oleg Semyonov told Interfax.
"In line with the strategic development plan, the airline is supposed to complete building a hub at [Moscow's] Vnukovo Airport by 2015. We're already close to this goal, we're flying more than 100 routes from there. And starting in 2015, with a horizon to 2020, the airline will begin building a transport hub in the eastern part of the country," Semyonov said.
He said the two hubs will be linked by frequent daily flights, and each hub will have its own route network in the region it serves.
"We still have time to make a final decision on where we will choose the point for applying our interests. The range of these airports is approximately clear - it could be Krasnoyarsk, Novosibirsk, Irkutsk or even Khabarovsk," Semyonov said.
He said that the company does not currently have extensive services in Eastern Siberia and the Far East, however, business activity is growing in this region, primarily due to resource development.
"Of course, there won't be services comparable to the number of routes from Vnukovo. We see serious potential in [as yet] nonexistent interregional connections between Siberia and regions of the Far East, between Siberia and countries in East Asia," Semyonov said.
In selecting the location for its hub, the airline will take into account the quality of airport management, as well as support from regional authorities, he said.
The airline now has passenger flights to 180 destinations, Semyonov said.
UTair is one of Russia's largest airlines, and is one of the largest helicopter fleet operators in the world.