AirBaltic CEO says not right to fly to Russia following Ukraine invasion

From its base in Latvia on Europe’s doorstep to Russia, AirBaltic has taken quick action in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Select flights are suspended, staff accounted for, and routes adjusted following the closure of Russian and Ukrainian airspace. But quick action does not make the situation any better. “I think it’s the worst you can have as an airline when you have to deal with a war,” AirBaltic CEO Martin Gauss said in an interview Monday. But “it doesn’t really matter what the airline thinks and does because it’s about the people,” he added. AirBaltic has suspended Moscow and St Petersburg flights through at least the end of May — one of the longest airline suspensions announced to date — and to Kyiv and Odessa until it is safe for the airline to return. Russia made up 2% of the airline’s planned capacity in February, and Ukraine nearly 5%, according to Cirium schedule data. “As soon as Ukraine is a free country again, we will immediately re-enter and help to rebuild,” said Gauss. The airline had no staff on the ground when Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24 due to a precautionary decision to not park any aircraft on the ground overnight in the country in the weeks prior. But Gauss was not as kind to Russia. “Being in a war in Europe, we cannot — and don’t think it’s right — to offer connectivity to Russia,” he said. AirBaltic is rapidly adjusting the crisis. It has already revised its budget for 2022 to adjust for higher fuel prices; Brent crude stood at $100.74 per barrel on Monday, up nearly 29 percent since the beginning of the year, per Bloomberg data. And flights that would typically fly over Russia, including between Riga and Dubai, have been rerouted — though none suspended — which adds cost.<br/>