Romanian startup AirConnect launches its first flights

Romania’s newest airline has put its first regular flights for sale this Friday (26). AirConnect is based in Bucharest and currently operates a single ATR 72-600 in charter operations, and the first regular run is expected to take place in October 15.

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The chosen destinations are nine in Romania: Baia Mare, Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Constanƫa, Oradea, Sibiu, Suceava, Târgu Mureș and Timișoara. The Hungarian capital Budapest is also on the list.

While two routes will be connected to Budapest, the rest will be concentrated domestically, in a diverse selection of connections.

Air Connect intends to connect underserved routes by benefitting from the lower capacity of its ATRs. In some city pairs, the start-up will face competition, especially with the national carrier TAROM — which also operates the Franco-Italian turboprops.

In these flights, the company is trying to undercut the State-owned airline by offering lower fares, starting from EUR33,07 (one-way) between Bucharest and Suceava.

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Air Connect is backed by five Romanian investors and is led by CEO Tudor Constantinescu, who previously served as the Chief Commercial Officer at Blue Air, Romania’s local low-cost carrier.