Airport, Financial Services, Latvia, Legislation, Lithuania, Transport

It is difficult to say when the Lithuanian Court of Appeal might hear the appellate claim by AirBaltic, LETA was told at the airline.

The Vilnius Regional Court made its ruling on January 27, 2016, ordering airBaltic to pay EUR 16.121 million in damages to flyLAL but discharging from liability the Riga airport.

The dispute between the parties over damages was heard behind closed doors. Latvia’s companies contested expert conclusions, which put the damages sustained by flyLAL due to discounts, which were provided by Riga Airport to airBaltic between 2004 and 2008 and were described by the Lithuanian air company as discriminatory, at EUR 43.4 million. flyLAL sought EUR 57.87 million in damages from the Latvian companies.

Commenting on the court ruling, airBaltic said it had been successfully restructured and was demonstrating consistent net profitability, therefore interest about the carrier was naturally growing. ”airBaltic will refrain from any comments while the multiple court proceedings are ongoing with flyLAL involved. At the same time the airline will employ the available legal mechanisms to resolve and close the court proceedings,” the airline said, stating its intention to appeal the court decision.

The Lithuanian court's decision will not make airBaltic to revise its development plans in Lithuania but strong demand from both outbound and inbound travelers is a prerequisite for future growth in Lithuania, the Latvian airline said.

Back in 2006, Latvia’s competition regulator acknowledged that the discounts provided by the airport of Riga distorted the market and favored two companies – Latvia’s airBaltic and Ireland’s Ryanair.

airBaltic, founded in 1995, is 99.8% owned by the Latvian state and serves direct flights to about 60 destinations from its home base in Riga.