Selling points include fast handling, low charges, free slots and a terminal that’s less than two years old.
These are just some of the attributes which the team from Pardubice Airport (PED) will be promoting at CONNECT 2020 in Antalya.
The Czech airport, operated by the East Bohemian Airport Company, is east of Pragueand almost at the external border of the European Union’s Schengen area. And it is looking to build its traffic further now that it has a maximum capacity of 250,000 passengers per year. The passenger numbers in 2018 were a little under 150,000, so little wonder that the airport has that list of incentives mentioned above.
The terminal was completed at the end of 2017 at a cost of CZK256 million and is named after Jan Kašpar, the first Czech aviator. It opened for commercial services on 30 January 2018.
Pardubice believes its location is a great advantage. The airport is 4 km from Pardubice city centre and a 50 minute train ride from the centre of Prague. For those wishing to drive the 100 km to the capital city, the average drive time is 60 minutes. Free parking at the airport is designed to make that an attractive option.
During the current winter season, SkyUp Airlines is operating a new route to Kiev Boryspil Airport three times a week, reports David Procházka, head of handling & route development for Pardubice Airport. “From 30 March 2020, that will increase to five times a week,” he confirms.
The new route has joined scheduled service by Red Wings Airlines to Moscow Domodedovo Airport (DME) and Rossiya Airlines’ service to St Petersburg Pulkovo Airport. Meanwhile the summer 2020 season will be bolstered by Ryanair flying to Alicante twice a week between the end of March and the third week of October.
Other summer destinations previously served from Pardubice include Rhodes, Heraklion, Podgorica, Antalya and Burgas. The airport aims to repeat these service in 2020 and add others.