September 2010

PRAGUE AIRPORT AT “WORLD ROUTE DEVELOPMENT FORUM 2010”

Prague Airport successfully concluded its presentation at the 16th World Route Development Forum that was held from 19^th to 21^st September in Vancouver, Canada. The attractively designed exhibition stand of Prague Airport was not only a representative home to informal meetings and promotion of the airport services but also a popular place for relaxation and fun. Each conference day, the stand was visited by a number of delegates from aviation industry who were able to enjoy an unbelievable magician show, amusing Nintendo Wii games, tasty Czech beer and delicious refreshments. Along with many productive meetings held with airline representatives in the official part of the conference, the World Routes 2010 event provided an extraordinary opportunity to attract new business and discuss plans of further development of operations at Prague Airport.

WORLD PREMIERE OF UNIQUE THEATRE PERFORMANCE AT THE AIRPORT

On 21^st September, the departure hall of Prague Airport’s Terminal 2 became the stage for the world premiere of a unique theatre performance “No Room in Heaven – LETI at the Airport”. Five European authors wrote five short plays for this project. Their common topic is a fast lifestyle of Europe today and an airport as a specific symbol of this lifestyle. It is a place for encountering strange cultures and individuals but also a neuralgic point of contemporary society; a place that symbolises speed, flexibility and loss of identity. The pilot staging was a project by the Centre for Contemporary Drama that was founded by Theatre LETI, Theatre on the Balustrade and the Arts and Theatre Institute.

NEW QUALITY SHOPPING IN AELIA DUTY FREE SHOPS

Two recently renovated Aelia Duty Free shops were opened in Terminals 1 & 2 at Prague Airport in September. The operator of the new shops is Aelia Czech Republic, a joint venture of the Aelia Group and HDS Retail Czech Republic, part of the French Lagardère Services Group. The reconstruction, being under way since July, aimed at increasing the attractiveness of shopping at the airport, as well as improvement of comfort for customers. The shops feature completely refurbished interiors from floor to ceiling, with special lighting to enhance the aesthetics of the space. Aelia Duty Free shops offer four basic categories of products: perfumes and cosmetics (deluxe global brands and Travel Exclusive products), confectionery, alcohol and tobacco products.

LAUNCH OF CAMPAIGN PROMOTING BETTER AIRPORT ACCESSIBILITY

Prague Airport has launched its marketing campaign that communicates an improvement in accessibility to the airport to potential passengers from Eastern parts of the Czech Republic. Thanks to the recent infrastructure developments, increasing the highway network of the Czech Republic over 1,100 km, transportation by car from these regions became faster and more efficient. The promotion campaign covers presentation at a number of billboards and posters situated on main transport passages in the targeted locations. The adverts are using a theme of close proximity of exotic destinations that can be easily reached by flying from the airport.

ROADSHOW FOR TRAVEL AGENTS

From 25^th October until 4^th November 2010, Prague Airport will organise a roadshow focused on travel agents and tour operators in selected cities across the Czech Republic. Series of meetings in Prague, Zlin, Olomouc, Brno and Ostrava will present benefits of new special packages prepared by Prague Airport for travel agencies and their customers as well as provide up-to-date information about destination network and services available at Prague Airport. The audience from the travel industry community will have an extraordinary opportunity to listen to amazing stories of renowned traveller Jiri Kolbaba from his wandering around the world, taste exotic meals and win free tickets supplied by Czech Airlines, Emirates and Delta Air Lines.

FIRST AIRCRAFT IN NEW COLOURS OF “HOLIDAYS CZECH AIRLINES”

HOLIDAYS Czech Airlines, a subsidiary company of the national carrier Czech Airlines providing charter operations and tour operator services, introduced the first aircraft painted in its new livery design. The branding of the HOLIDAYS Czech Airlines is distinguished by the use of a specific logo and an orange version of the traditional dynamic element of the mother company Czech Airlines. HOLIDAYS Czech Airlines offers charter services and is also experienced in organising tours and packages, e.g. weekend trips, sea cruises or spa & wellness stays. Further information is available at www.holidayscsa.cz.

SMARTWINGS NEW REGULAR FLIGHTS FROM PRAGUE

SmartWings, the only Czech low cost carrier, operated by the Travel Service Company, added a new frequency to its flights between Prague and Paris/Charles de Gaulle on 1^st September 2010. From Monday till Saturday, except of Tuesday, the frequency increased to three daily flights. The airline also announced a launch of flights to Amsterdam and Bucharest, effective from 1^st November 2010. The new service between Prague and Amsterdam will be operated two times a day in convenient times to suit not only the leisure travellers’ but also the business clients’ needs. The new flights from Prague to Bucharest/Otopeni will be operated once a day in the morning time. For more information and bookings visit www.smartwings.com.

Traffic results of Prague Airport for August 2010 reported a year-on-year decrease by 2.4% in passenger volumes. The total number of passengers amounted to 1,308,083. The number of movements declined by 5.4% to the total of 15,043 take-offs and landings. The volume of air cargo achieved 4,863 tons, representing an immense increase by 46%.

Full service carriers achieved a satisfactory growth by 3.6% while charter airlines declined by 3.7% whereas the most significant drop in passenger numbers by 14.8% was experienced in the low cost segment. The reason for that is the fact that August 2009 was the last month of full operation of SkyEurope base, representing a 7% share on the total passenger volumes at Prague Airport, before the carrier complete suspension of flights at the end of the month. Moreover, it was already a period of parallel replacement of its operations by other airlines.

The most popular countries in August 2010 were Greece, the United Kingdom and Spain. A robust growth of passenger volumes was experienced on routes between Prague and Russia (+20.5%), Germany (+14%) and France (+11.6%). The TOP 3 destinations were Paris/Charles de Gaulle with a significant increase by 59.1%, Moscow/Sheremetyevo and London/Heathrow. Further routes that reported an impressive growth were charter destinations Hurghada (+16.2%) and Antalya (+13%).