Major Airlines Suspend Flights To Thessaloniki

Swiss International Air Lines will cease routes to and from Thessaloniki as of 27 and 28 October 2012 respectively due to “financial difficulties of the route and the overall restructuring of the service,” travel agents of the Northern Greek city were informed last month.

According to reports, Lufthansa group that includes Swiss, Austrian Airlines and Germanwings decided to shrink its network by 20 percent internationally due to financial difficulties and the general economic crisis.

Other carriers have also announced plans to suspend flights to Thessaloniki.

Italian carrier Alitalia, which connects Thessaloniki with Rome since 1998, plans to halt services from this fall and return in March 2013. The carrier currently operates two daily flights and will continue until late September or early October.

Austrian Airlines, with a presence of at least 40 years in the city of Thessaloniki, will continue to fly to Vienna from Thessaloniki until the end of October 2012. In the winter, the Austrian carrier will return with three flights a week.

Also, British Airways will stop the Thessaloniki-London connection as of 4 November 2012.

Czech airline CSA and Hungarian Malev, which filed for bankruptcy, have already stopped their operations in the Northern Greek city.

In addition, Air Berlin will also suspend flights to Greece as of late August and early September.