AEGEAN and Cyprus Airways have unveiled their new codeshare deal which connects the networks of the two flag carriers far enhancing the customer experience.
The new deal came into effect today and will not only boost business and leisure travel between Greece and Cyprus, but will also offer both airlines’ customers improved flight schedules and seamless connectivity between both countries and many other international destinations.
Through this agreement, AEGEAN will place its (A3) code on flights operated by Cyprus Airways to Paris, Rome, Milan, Beirut, Cairo, Yerevan and all Greek destinations, whilst the Cypriot carrier will place its (CY) code on all AEGEAN’s network in Greece and the airline’s flights to Madrid and Barcelona. Customers will also continue to benefit from the respective operating carrier’s other services, including through check-in.
During a Press Event held in Larnaca to announce this agreement, Paul Sies, Cyprus Airways Chief Executive Officer, said: “The signing of this agreement is yet another milestone for the new Cyprus Airways. We are pleased today to announce our codeshare agreement with our neighbouring flag carrier, AEGEAN, a Star Alliance member, and with whom we share a strong market reputation and commitment to customers. Both Cyprus Airways and AEGEAN share similar attributes such as quality service and customer satisfaction which makes us ideal partners. This is an important day for us as we are setting the foundation to further enhance cooperation with like-minded airline partners and continue with our journey to expand our network to offer the Cypriot community new travel opportunities to Europe and beyond, whilst making it easier for travellers from all over the world to visit Cyprus. Both carriers together will have the largest and qualitative best offering for people flying to and from Cyprus”.
Roland Jaggi, AEGEAN’s Chief Commercial Officer added: “We are very pleased with this codeshare agreament as it will further expand our network and offer our customers even more travel benefits and enhanced connectivity. We look forward to working with Cyprus Airways, and providing services on an enhanced destination network to passengers of both airlines. AEGEAN is steadily investing in Cyprus and in strategic partnerships that upgrade its services and allows to meet the growing needs of its passengers."
Passenger numbers are up by 50%.....
Just recently AEGEAN announced it had carried more than 5 million passengers in total during the period January - May 2023, recording a 50% increase in passenger traffic compared to the corresponding period of 2022 and exceeding the passenger traffic of the same pre-pandemic period, confirming the positive outlook for demand to the country that had initially emerged during the first quarter of the year.
Specifically, AEGEAN's international passenger traffic to and from Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" has increased by 65% compared to 2022 and 12% compared to 2019. For the same period, international passenger traffic from Thessaloniki Airport "Makedonia" is particularly enhanced, reaching 72% compared to the previous year and 30% compared to 2019.
This increase was achieved both by the overall expansion of AEGEAN's activity with new routes abroad, as this year it is operating with the largest international network of destinations in its history, and the timely increase in the frequency of flights, on existing routes such as Italy, Spain, Germany, Scandinavia, Israel, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
It should be noted that with the beginning of the summer season, which began earlier than every year, direct flights from Athens to Bristol, Birmingham, Riga, and Lille, direct flights from Thessaloniki to Barcelona and Cologne, and direct flights from Chania, Ioannina, Mykonos, Rhodes, and Kalamata to Tel Aviv started. In the next few days, 9 new routes are expected to be launched from/to Athens (Ljubljana, Dammam, Newcastle, Seville, Olbia, Kuwait, Pisa, Palma de Mallorca and Split), 3 new routes from/to Thessaloniki (Venice, Yerevan, Tbilisi), while at the same time, 5 routes from/to Heraklion (Vienna, Marseille, Larnaca, Tirana, and Belgrade) and the route connecting Rhodes with Belgrade return to the schedule after the winter break.
It is recalled that AEGEAN for 2023 will offer a total of 18 million seats, of which 11 million will be international seats, 2 million more than in 2022, and 800 thousand more than in 2019. The airline will operate to 165 destinations in 46 countries with 272 direct routes from its 10 bases in Greece and abroad, with a fleet of 76 aircraft, including the brand-new Airbus A320 and A321 neo.