Almost half of Russia's airports with international classification are threatened with loss of status, on cost grounds, but protests are being mounted (520 words)

Published: 11/8/2001

According to reports the GSGA has applied to the Russian Government to propose the removal of international status from 32 of the 71 Russian airports that hold the classification. Despite the seemingly draconian cuts, the GSGA says that the airports in question service less than 3% of international passenger traffic and the retention of international status is costing the state money, owing to the need to maintain customs and border facilities at the airports. However, the list not only includes minor airports such as Ivanovo, Raduzhny Migalovo, Orsk, Neryungri and Anadyr, but also regional centres, including Surgut, that has only recently commenced international flights, Abakan, Blagovezhensk, Magadan and Yakutsk. The GSGA's proposals have brought howls of protests from the regional administrations that see international status for their airports as a cornerstone of economic development. Alexei Lebed of the Khakasia Republic Government has already complained that the loss of international status for Abakan Airport will lose it revenues, reduce the region's taxes and result in redundancies. Abakan Airport received international status eight years ago and, since 1998, has been expanding its international flights, with services to China and Korea in addition to Japan and Europe. Those governors with smaller airports are no less concerned over the potential loss of status, with Roman Abramovich, oligarch and Governor of Chukotka in remote North Eastern Russia, keen to see the ability of Anadyr Airport to service flights to Alaska and Seattle preserved, and planning to oppose any loss of status. The presence of Surgut Airport on the list is particularly puzzling, since it received its international status so recently and Inessa Gousseva of Tyumenaviatrans (TAT) points out that, given the seasonal nature of travel in Tyumen, has yet to have the opportunity to build its international traffic. She adds that TAT welcomed the opening of international flights and the company plans to add more from the airport's new refurbished terminal, rather than flying passengers via Tyumen and other cities. Victor Gorbachev, the President of Airport Association, has also questioned why some important regional airports like Surgut, Blagoveshchensk, Yakutsk and Magadan were included on the list. He believes it makes no sense for airports that are not close to other international airports to lose their status, citing Blagoveshchensk, Yakutsk, and Magadan as examples. He does, however, accept that other should lose their intentional status. Airports in Ivanovo, Elista and Ulan-Ude serve few international passengers. Ramenskoe and Migalovo are used only to serve cargo flights and, according to Gorbachev, the state should have barred them from operating international flights a long time ago. The Ministry of Property said, that as a shareholder in most of the airports being reviewed, it had received the list of the airports under threat, but added that any decisions would be taken on a case-by-case basis rather than as a measure for the whole sector. It insisted that each case would be comprehensively reviewed and decisions only made after detailed evaluation.

Article ID: 2897