South Aegean Islands Want Landing Slots for Smaller Planes

Photo source: Region of South Aegean

South Aegean Region Governor George Hatzimarkos is calling on the Greek Transport Ministry to take actions so that landing slots are awarded to island airports to handle smaller aircraft and facilitate island-hopping.

In a letter to Transport Minister Kostas Karamanlis, Hatzimarkos is citing the need for transport services all year round and particularly during the winter months.

The governor is requesting that the Hellenic Slot Coordination Authority grant landing slots at the airports of Paros, Mykonos, Santorini, Syros, Chania and Heraklion (Crete), and Rhodes to new airline iFly Cycladic so that it can carry out flights.

South Aegean Region Governor George Hatzimarkos (right). Photo source: Region of South Aegean

Among others, Hatzimarkos underlined the need for the improvement of South Aegean island transport and interconnectivity, which will help upgrade the local tourism product and enable inter-island travel.

The governor went on to add that iFly Cycladic will also be running flights between the islands in the winter months providing a much-needed service to the small island communities.

Photo source: Region of South Aegean

To address the issue, Hatzimarkos is calling on Karamanlis to implement a coordinated VFR flight plan across the South Aegean island airport network in order improve the standard of living of island inhabitants and strengthen tourism.