Aeroflot's airline plan on hold until the autumn

Russian airline Aeroflot said yesterday it expected no progress on plans to set up an Irish subsidiary before the autumn.

Aeroflot first touted the possibility of an Irish subsidiary, which would give it new European routes under an EU open skies agreement, early this year when it made a failed bid to buy cash-strapped carrier Virgin Express Ireland.

"Right now there is no progress [on opening an Irish airline] and I doubt there will be any before the autumn. It is summer now and people have other things on their minds," said Aeroflot spokeswoman Ms Irina Dannenberg.

She said Aeroflot was considering several possibilities for establishing a foothold in Ireland, including buying an airline outright or setting one up from scratch.

Russian and foreign media last week quoted an Aeroflot official in London as saying the company was considering setting up an Irish airline that could begin operating from summer 2002.

Mr Boris Krivchenko was quoted as saying the new carrier could be set up over six to eight months with an initial fleet of two Boeing 737s. But Ms Dannenberg said no concrete parameters had been worked out. "Everything would depend on investors and they have to be found first," she said.

Aeroflot, which launched ambitious plans to overhaul its Soviet image last year as part of plans to join a major Western air alliance, would use an Irish carrier as a way of reaching more European destinations under the EU open skies agreement.

Mr Krivchenko was quoted as saying the new carrier would link passenger flows within Europe to destinations that the airline already serves.