Olympic Air, the Greek carrier owned by Marfin Investment Group
SA (MIG), will focus on serving the Greek domestic market and boosting operations to the Balkans and the Middle East after a merger proposal with its local rival, Aegean Airlines SA (AEGN), was rejected by European anti-trust regulators in January.Olympic Air signed a code sharing agreement with Cyprus Airways on March 22 and would be open to similar arrangements with other foreign airlines, Olympic Chairman Ioannis Karakadas told reporters in Athens today.
Aegean Airlines bought four slots from Olympic Air at London’s Heathrow Airport and Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris last month after Olympic decided to exit those markets along with Vienna and Brussels as part of its new strategy.
Karakadas, who was appointed chairman in February, criticized the Greek government for helping foreign airlines by scrapping takeoff and landing fees at regional airports during the tourist season while leaving them in place at Athens International Airport, where Olympic is based.
“Greek travellers are paying more for airport taxes in Athens then they are for the actual ticket,” Karakadas said. “We’re not at all happy with the way in which the state is penalizing Greek air carriers.”
by Tom Stoukas
source: Bloomberg
