Record 103,682 passengers cleared at Karlovy Vary airport in 2012

Karlovy Vary, West Bohemia, Jan 15 (CTK) - A record 103,682 passengers were cleared at the Karlovy Vary airport last year, sales and marketing manager Radek Zabransky told CTK yesterday.

The airlines fly to five cities in Russia from the airport that is owned by the Karlovarsky region.

Over 51 tonnes of goods were transported last year of which more than 13 tonnes was mail.

Last year was a record year in the development of civil aviation in the region, said deputy governor Petr Navratil.

Breaking through the level of 100,000 passengers a year testifies to the growing interest of Russian clients in direct flights to and from the Czech Republic. This is also economically attractive for air companies, Navratil added.

Sixty percent of passengers fly to Moscow, followed by Saint Petersburg and Yekaterinburg.

National air carrier CSA carried 61,594 passengers on flights to Moscow, Saint Petersburg and Samara.

Other important airlines are Aeroflot, Ural Airlines and Rossyia.

A total of 1,313 passengers flew to Antalya, Turkey, in the summer season.

Karlovy Vary airport made a pre-tax profit of Kc10m in 2011, up from 2010's Kc2.26m. Last year's results are not yet available but the firm will be in the black by preliminary figures, said director of the airport Vaclav Cerny.