Finnair has announced it will fly fewer frequencies on its
European network in September than originally planned due to ongoing Covid-19 travel
restrictions.
According to the airline, new restrictions introduced in
recent weeks have hit passenger demand, causing it to lower the frequency of
flights. However, it will continue operating to all European destinations it
operated in August, with the exception of Nice and Turku, which will be temporarily
ceased in September.
The plan also affects some domestic services, with flights
to Kuopio operating once daily and those to Vaasa and Mariehamn five times a
week. Flights to Tampere will not start in September as originally planned.
However, Finnair will increase frequencies to Ivalo and
Kittila to eight times a week from September and to Kuusamo to nine times a
week, while Rovaniemi will continue to be served 28 times a week.
Mikko Turtiainen, Finnair’s VP of market management,
commented: “The corona situation has changed in many countries in recent weeks,
which is why several countries have imposed new travel restrictions. There are
still no connecting passengers from Asia and the United States to support
European flights because of severe travel restrictions in these regions. Also,
the local demand is more moderate than estimated due to the same restrictions.
Therefore, we must adjust flights accordingly. In September, we will operate
about 30 per cent of the flights we had in September 2019.”