To the City of Romeo and Juliet, or Futuristic Astana; The Summer Schedule Features Nearly 170 Destinations, Increased Capacity and Number of Flights

Prague, 21 March 2024

Astana, Tallinn, Florence, and Verona are the new destinations Prague Airport is adding to the direct connection network operated under the summer flight schedule, the effect of which commences on the last day of March. A total of 68 carriers will offer services to 167 destinations. New connections to popular holiday destinations, such as Brindisi, Izmir, La Palma, and Ponta Delgada, will also be launched.

In terms of the number of destinations and carriers, Prague Airport will reach almost 90 percent of the offer of the 2019 record year. Jiří Pos, Chairman of the Prague Airport Board of Directors, detailed the development plans for the rest of the year, saying: “Long-haul routes to Asia and North America remain a priority for the further development of air connections. We are currently negotiating with air carriers the options of launching regular connections to Hanoi, Beijing, Delhi, Bangkok, and New York. All these destinations have their business potential in the inbound tourism segment and are also of interest from the point of view of holiday travellers, the business clientele, and the cargo transport.”

Additional increases in the number of flight frequencies on more than thirty routes have also been scheduled. Prague Airport will handle up to 93 flights to London a week and 59 connections to Antalya. Passengers will be able to choose from up to 57 flights to Paris, up to 54 flights to Amsterdam, and 40 weekly connections to Milan. A higher number of connections will also be operated on direct routes to destinations such as Barcelona, Oslo, Marseille, and Copenhagen.

More Capacity

A significant increase in the number of flights (10 times a week) and the seat capacity offered will also be seen on the regular connection of Qatar Airways thanks to the deployment of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner on the route to Doha in Qatar. During the summer season, carriers will offer more than 12.8 million seats, which is 16 percent more than in the previous summer season. From April, Korean Air will once again fly between Prague and Seoul four times a week using a modern Boeing 787 Dreamliner on this route.

According to Jiří Vyskoč, Aviation Business Development Executive Director, the airport should reach the pre-pandemic volume of handled passengers by the end of 2025 or the beginning of 2026. “We expect to handle over 16 million passengers throughout the course of this year. However, due to the war in Ukraine, we are still over one and a half million passengers short and lack sixteen destinations from the Russian Federation, Ukraine, and Belarus, where operations are currently disrupted. If we factor this in our calculations, we are technically speaking at 100 percent of the 2019 figures.”

New Carriers

Compared to last summer, several new carriers will launch their services to/from Prague Airport. Qanot Sharq Airlines will connect Prague with Tashkent, SCAT Airlines will offer direct flights to Astana, FlyOne will launch flights to Chisinau, Arkia will fly to Tel Aviv, and KM Malta will fly to Malta.

Passengers can now find on Prague Airport’s website a detailed overview of available connections, including a list of airlines offering flights to a particular destination, which is updated on a regular basis. Interested parties can use a convenient link from the overview to the airline’s website, offering the most up-to-date information about the flight schedule and the option of booking tickets directly on the website. Selected destinations also feature interesting local details for travellers.

Throughout the summer season, it remains recommended to passengers with scheduled flights to always review all currently valid conditions of travel regarding their final destination before the trip. In addition, passengers should arrive at the airport at least two (2) hours before the scheduled departure of their flight and proceed to security screening or passport control points immediately after checking-in.

Airport Charges

With the summer flight schedule effect, the Departing Passenger Service Charge is being adjusted. Airport charges at Václav Havel Airport Prague remained unchanged in 2023 despite the effects of increasing inflation. In 2024, their overall increase amounts only to about five percent on average. In the case of Departing Passenger Service Charge, there is an increase of 5.8 percent from 659 crowns to 697 crowns. This amount already includes the PRM (Passengers with Reduced Mobility) charge of 15 crowns. The reason is the increase in operating costs, especially higher energy prices, and the increase in personnel costs due to high inflation. Compared to charges at 20 competing airports in Europe, our airport charges remain below the market average.

NEW DESTINATIONS WITH REGULAR OPERATIONS

Astana

Brindisi

Dubai World Central

The East Midlands

Florence

Izmir

Chisinau

La Palma

Ponta Delgada

Poznań

Tallinn

Tashkent

Verona

NEW CONNECTIONS TO POPULAR HOLIDAY RETREATS

Brindisi – Smartwings

Izmir – SunExpress

La Palma – Smartwings

Ponta Delgada – Smartwings

TOP FIVE COUNTRIES PER NUMBER OF DESTINATIONS

Spain – 23

Italy – 20

Greece – 20

United Kingdom – 12

France – 8