LOT will fly to China

LOT will fly to China

The Polish airline LOT will probably organize flights to China already in 2012. Not long ago LOT Polish Airlines has received permission from the Russian Federation to fly over Siberia. As a result the company’s Chairman of the Board of Directors Marcin Piroga said that since 2012 LOT will operate regular flights to Beijing.

For the development of new extended routes LOT plans to renew its fleet. Boeing 767 aircrafts, which now operate most of the transoceanic flights of the company, will be replaced by the newest Boeing 787 Dreamliners.

In the interview with the Polish Radio Marcin Piroga noted that, given the new opportunities opened after the permission to fly over Siberia, the company will not stop only on Chinese direction. Apart from Beijing LOT Polish Airlines is also considering the possibility of organizing a direct flight from Warsaw to Tokyo, Shanghai, Seoul and New Delhi.

This news promises to raise the value of the Polish airline shares, which is experiencing hard times. Thus, in early 2011 LOT Polish Airlines was supposed to be sold to one of the world's largest airlines. In particular, among the possible buyers was Turkish Airlines. But the deal failed.

But now the question of selling LOT Polish Airlines can be removed from the agenda. As noted by the head of the airline, in 2011 LOT managed to minimize losses beyond a certain level. Marcin Piroga noted that in 2012 the company plans to become profitable.

LOT Polish Airlines is one of the largest air carriers in Eastern Europe. The company operates regular flights on dozens of destinations. Among the most popular destinations are Chicago, Newark, Toronto and New York. LOT is a member of the Star Alliance. The company three times won the title of the "Best Airline in Central and Eastern Europe" according to OAG (Official Airline Guide).

Ilya Kalachev

Date: 23/11/2011