Russian airlines’ 2015 traffic level with 2014

Photo by Leonid Faerberg / Transport-Photo.com

The Russian airlines’ combined 2015 traffic stayed roughly level with the previous year’s results, Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov has reported. Last year’s figure stood at approximately 93 million passengers. Russian Aviation Insider’s archive data indicates that the 2014 traffic amounted to 93.181 million passengers, up 10.2% from 2013.

Traffic growth continued throughout 2014, stopped in January 2015, and gave way to a decline in February. The 2015 summer season was marginally better, but was followed by a nosedive in October, which continued through November. The December figures have not been published yet.

The share of domestic traffic grew to 55-60% in 2015 (against 49.7% in 2014 and 46.4% in 2013), Sokolov Said, explaining the trend by the aftermath of the Russian economic slowdown, the weakening national currency, and the annexation of Crimea, a preferred holiday destination for many Russians.

Commenting on the 2015 results in the commercial air transport sector, Sokolov noted that his ministry supported carriers’ calls for waiving VAT on domestic air fares. In the spring of 2015, the tax was reduced from 18% to 10%. Sokolov believes that abolishing the tax altogether will help prevent situations like the recent collapse of Russia’s second largest ailrine Transaero.