"Budapest Airport welcomed the first airBaltic flight linking the Hungarian captial city with the Latvian capital city of Riga on Monday, 16 May. Flight number BT491 touched down ahead of the 12:15 scheduled time to a welcoming committee, including representatives of Budapest Airport, Budapest Mayor’s Office, the Latvian Ambassador and representatives of the Hungarian National Tourist Office (HNTO).The flight schedules are Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays:
Depart Riga 11:00 Arrive Budapest 12:15
Depart Budapest 12:40 Arrive Riga 15:55
Gregory Pomerantsev airBaltic senior VP Sales & Marketing, Nils Usakovs Mayor of Riga and other airline and Riga municipality dignitaries as well as Latvian journalists were on the two-hour fifteen minute maiden flight, which was operated by a Boeing 737 aircraft, although the route will usually be operated by a Bombardier Q400.
The delegation was greeted by Budapest Airport’s Jost Lammers Chief Executive Officer and Kam Jandu Director of Aviation, as well as the Deputy Mayor of Budapest and the Latvian Ambassador to Hungary. HNTO, which supported the launch, was also present in the welcoming commitee.
The aircraft was greeted with a traditional water cannon salute, complemented by a ribbon and cake cutting ceremony to celebrate the new arrival.
The Budapest Tourism Office welcomed passengers of airBaltic’s Riga flight personally at Budapest Airport. The passengers were greeted with a special promotion; 20% off the Budapest Card, which provides incentives including free public transport, free and discounted museum entries, discounted city walking tours and many more. The Budapest Cards are available at the tourist information desks in each terminals of Budapest Airport.
The new flights will provide passengers travelling via Budapest with improved transit connections to destinations in Scandinavia, Russia and the CIS. Lead-in fares for economy tickets start from just 49 Euros for a one way fare; airBaltic is also offering the commercial traveller a business class service. Tickets can be purchased via the airBaltic website – www.airbaltic.com."
Source: Budapest Airport
17.05.2011