airBaltic, the Latvian national airline, and Bulgaria Air, the flag carrier of Bulgaria, have announced the commencement of a new codeshare partnership between the carriers. Having been signed on May 8, 2024, the agreement enables both carriers to offer greater flexibility and better connections to their respective passengers on flights between Latvia and Bulgaria as well as to other destinations on both companies’ route networks. The first codeshare flight took place on May 14, 2024.
As part of the codeshare cooperation, airBaltic will add its BT flight prefix code on Bulgaria Air’s Sofia (SOF) to Varna (VAR) route. Meanwhile, Bulgaria Air will place its FB code on airBaltic’s Sofia to Riga (RIX) route as well as onward airBaltic-operated flights from Riga to Stockholm (ARN), Oslo (OSL), Copenhagen (CPH) and Helsinki (HEL).
“We are glad to enter a codeshare agreement with Bulgaria Air, shortly after the launch of our first direct route from the Bulgarian capital to our home base in Riga,” said Martin Gauss, President and CEO at airBaltic. “This partnership benefits local Baltic travelers with access to the versatile network of Bulgaria Air and local travelers in Bulgaria can now enjoy easier access to airBaltic’s destinations in Europe. We are looking forward to a successful, long-standing collaboration together.”
“We are delighted to partner with a great company like аirBaltic,” said Hristo Todorov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Bulgaria Air. “With this codeshare collaboration, our passengers can now enjoy seamless connections between our networks, opening up new travel opportunities across Europe with direct flights from Riga to key Scandinavian destinations such as Stockholm, Oslo, Copenhagen, and Helsinki.”
“These routes further strengthen our commitment to providing exceptional service and connectivity to Bulgarian passengers as a national flag carrier,” he added.
Bulgaria Air joins the growing list of carriers that now have codeshares with airBaltic. The Latvian airline currently has 23 codeshare agreements with many airlines around the world and operates joint flights with its partners to more than 300 destinations. Other codeshare partners include Air France, Brussels Airlines, Emirates, Iberia, and Turkish Airlines.
airBaltic operates more than 130 routes from its four bases at Riga, Tallinn, Vilnius, Tampere, and, seasonally, Gran Canaria, offering connections to destinations in the airline’s route network in Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, and the Caucasus region. The airBaltic fleet currently consists of 47 Airbus A220-300 aircraft, with a further three due to be delivered in 2024 and a further 30 on order.
Bulgaria Air was established in 2002 and operates both domestic and international flights, connecting Bulgaria to various destinations across Europe and the Middle East. The carrier currently operates a fleet of 15 aircraft comprising four Airbus A220-300s, a single A319, five A320s, and five Embraer ERJ-190s.
