✈️ Baltic aviation adds routes as traffic trends diverge
Wizz Air launched several new routes from Vilnius on Friday, adding daily flights to Tallinn, three weekly flights to Turku, and two weekly flights to Nice. Turku is a new destination for Lithuania’s airport network. The airline also repositioned an A321neo from Warsaw to Vilnius and now operates three aircraft based in Vilnius. In parallel, Wizz Air returned to Palanga Airport after a multi-year break, becoming the third airline operating from each airport in Lithuania.
At the same time, flydubai launched its first-ever direct flight to Vilnius, while Riga Airport confirmed the start of three weekly flydubai flights between Riga and Dubai. Looking ahead to next summer, Ryanair plans to increase frequency on the Vilnius–Athens route to four weekly flights in Summer 2026, following strong demand and a reported 95% load factor in the 2025 summer season. Aegean Airlines also operates on the route during summer.
Passenger traffic data for November shows uneven dynamics across the Baltic states. Airports in Lithuania handled a combined 526,000 passengers, up 8% year-on-year, led by Vilnius with 379,000 passengers (+11%), followed by Kaunas with 111,000 (-1%) and Palanga with 36,000 (+8%). Tallinn Airport recorded 261,000 passengers (+5%), while Riga Airport handled 541,000 passengers, down 2% compared with the same month last year.
Context:
Airline network expansion in the Baltics reflects diverging strategies among carriers and airports. Vilnius is strengthening its position as a regional growth hub for low-cost and hybrid airlines, while new long-haul connections via Dubai signal efforts to improve global connectivity. At the same time, mixed passenger trends highlight differences in recovery speed and route mix between Baltic capitals, with winter performance and summer 2026 capacity plans set to shape competition in the region.
Image: photos/photo_112@13-12-2025_23-24-30.jpg