MOSCOW, Dec 25 (Reuters) - Low-cost airline Ryanair and
other budget carriers are expected to start flying from Russia's
St Petersburg airport in 2020, the Russian Transport Ministry
said.
The move is part of Russia's plan to boost tourist flows to
St Petersburg and will mean more competition for Russian air
carriers, including national flag carrier Aeroflot.
The ministry said on Tuesday that Ryanair, EasyJet,
WizzAir, Volotea <IPO-VOLOT.MC>, Air Baltic
<IPO-AIRBALTIC.RI> and Fly One had expressed interest in flights
from St Petersburg's Pulkovo airport, Russia's fourth largest
after Moscow's three major hubs.
It said the companies had applied for flights from Pulkovo,
coded LED by the International Air Transport Association, to 22
countries, including Britain, Germany and France.
Russia will introduce a so-called "Open Skies" regime for
the companies for five years, the ministry said, allowing
airlines to fly to St Petersburg without requiring the
traditional bilateral inter-governmental agreements.
The move follows the introduction of a special electronic
visa system for tourists visiting St Petersburg which nationals
from 53 countries can take advantage of.
(Reporting by Gleb Stolyarov
Writing by Andrey Ostroukh,
Editing by Andrew Osborn and Ed Osmond)