Funding cut for public service air routes
The Transport Ministry will cut annual spending on subsidies paid to air carriers for servicing 24 public service routes to 22.07 million euros from 34.6 million euros, it said yesterday. The largest chunk of the pie will go to Olympic Air, which will receive 38.2 million euros over the next two years to provide flights from Athens to islands including Leros, Milos, Skyros, Naxos and Paros. Aegean Airlines, set to merge with Olympic, will serve routes such as Athens-Siteia (Crete) and Thessaloniki-Kalamata but will not receive any remuneration. The same applies for Astra Airlines, which will fly between Thessaloniki and the island of Chios. Athens Airways will earn 4.4 million euros for air links such as Athens-Kythera and Sky Express will get 1.4 million euros for its flights to the Ionian Islands.
