Transaero Confirms Moscow Growth from Vnukovo Airport

Independent Russian operator Transaero Airlines has confirmed it has signed a memorandum of strategic cooperation with Vnukovo Airport to open up operations from the Moscow facility. The carrier offers more than 340 flights a week from the Russian capital but its activities are currently split between Domodedovo (84.7 per cent) and to a lesser extent Sheremetyevo (15.3 per cent). The decision to expand its network from a third airport is understood to be due to overcrowding at Domodedovo and concerns over development plans at the facility.

Transaero confirms that through the ten-year agreement it will launch operations from Moscow Vnukovo in May 2012 and will “constantly increase its capacity” to eventually handle up to two million passengers a year. The airport has made guarantees to provide the necessary infrastructure to support Transaero’s development plans including slots, parking positions and boarding bridges capable of supporting its expanding widebodied fleet. From 2015 this will include the capability to service four aircraft at any one time – two on domestic flights and two on international services.

Although the airline has yet to confirm its operational network from Vnukovo, except that it will serve a mix of domestic and international routes, it has already loaded capacity for a three times weekly link to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, twice weekly services to Magadan and a weekly rotation to Blagoveschensk, all from July 1, 2012. It is also expected to offer flights to Kiev and Tel Aviv and to destinations in Kazakhstan (from October 2012) although it has yet to open reservations for these flights.

The table below shows the current breakdown of air traffic in the domestic and international markets from Moscow's three main airports. The international figues for Vnukovo will increase notably this summer as Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines (THY) also introduce international flights from the facility.

As part of the agreement with Transaero, Vnukovo Airport has also confirmed it will support Transaero’s development by gaining approval to accommodate new large aircraft like the Airbus A380 and Boeing 747-8I intercontinental; types for which Transaero has outstanding commitments. The airport will also assign two bays at its Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility for work on Transaero’s widebodied 747 and 777 models, while a new hangar will be constructed to support the A380 and 747-8I in the future.

"We have signed a very important agreement which opens new prospects for the development of our airline in Moscow,” said Olga Pleshakova, General Director, Transaero Airlines. “I highly appreciate the aspiration of Vnukovo Airport to provide the most advanced and innovative services to Transaero Airlines. I'm confident that strategic cooperation between Transaero and Vnukovo will be a success, and our passengers will benefit from it."

In the table below we look at the leading players in the Moscow market, regardless of the airport that they serve and show which airlines have the largest capacity share in the domestic and international markets from the Russian capital. As can be seen Transaero Airlines plays a key role in the Russian domestic and international sectors and is currently ranked the fourth and second largest operator in these markets, respectively.