Finnish national carrier Finnair says that it has seen short-haul passenger traffic improve in September, but the impact COVID-19 is having on long-haul flights is still apparent. The Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-based airline also said that September had been a good month for cargo operations.
In a statement released on October 7, 2021, Finnair said that it carried 298,200 passengers during September, an increase of 158.1% compared to the same month in 2020. The Nordic airline also said that passenger traffic was up 11.9% compared to August even though it had one more day than September.
COVID-19 restrictions are hurting long-haul flights
Long-haul passenger numbers remained down on North Atlantic and Asian routes due mainly to restrictions imposed by countries to stop the spread of COVID-19. On average, Finnair operated 144 daily flights, including cargo operations in September. The figure represents an increase of 73.5% compared to September 2020 and an increase of more than 13.4% of flights the previous month.
During September, available cargo tonne-kilometers increased by 167.5 % year-on-year due to the impact of COVID-19 on passenger flights to Asia and North America. Finnair says that the demand for cargo was robust during September and that 92.7 of all Finnair flights arrived on schedule.
Finnair signs a codeshare agreement with Turkish Airlines
In other Finnair-related news, the oneworld alliance member announced that it had entered into a codeshare agreement with Turkish Airlines. Starting September 29, 2021, the Finnair AY code will be added to the following Turkish Airlines routes:
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)- Istanbul Airport (IST)
- Istanbul Airport (IST)-Athens International Airport (ATH)
- Istanbul Airport (IST)-Thessaloniki Airport Makedonia (SKG)
- Istanbul Airport (IST)-Sofia Airport (SOF)
- Istanbul Airport (IST)-Amman Queen Alia International Airport (AMM)
- Istanbul Airport (IST)-Sharm El Sheikh International Airport (SSH)
- Istanbul Airport (IST)-Hurghada International Airport (HRG)
- Istanbul Airport (IST)-Luxor International Airport (LXR)
- Istanbul Airport (IST)-Antalya Airport (AYT)
- Istanbul Airport (IST)-Gazipasa Alanya Airport (GZP)
For its part, Finnair will add the Turkish Airlines TK code to flights from its Helsinki hub to the following destinations:
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-Kuopio Airport (KUO)
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-Vaasa Airport (VAA)
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-Oulu Airport (OUL)
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-Rovaniemi Airport (RVN)
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-Keflavík International Airport (KEF)
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-Tallinn Airport (TLL)
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-Tartu Airport (TAY)
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-Riga International Airport (RIX)
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-Vilnius International Airport (VNO)
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-Antalya Airport (AYT)
- Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL)-Gazipasa Alanya Airport (GZP)
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The codeshare adds opportunities for Turkish Airlines
When speaking about the new codeshares in a Finnair statement the airlines Chief Commercial Officer, Ole Orvér, said:
“We are happy to be able to offer more options to our customers, as travel now starts to recover and our customers are again able to fulfill their travel dreams. We also welcome Turkish Airlines customers to explore the beautiful Nordics through our extensive network of connections from Helsinki.”
When adding Turkish Airlines’ thoughts to the statement Turkish Airlines Chief Investment & Technology Officer Ahmet Bolat PhD said:
“We are glad to expand our current interline cooperation in terms of this codeshare agreement with Finnair. With the introduction of joint flights on several destinations in Finland, Turkey and Baltics, Iceland, South Europe, North Africa, and Middle East, passengers would enjoy more travel alternatives through the combined flights.”
While it is nice to see Finnair increase its passenger numbers in September, it is evident that COVID-19 restrictions are limiting its long-haul flight recovery.
Please tell us what you think about Finnair’s September numbers in the comments.
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