UDC 629.73-057.68(477)(043.2)

G.Sh.Uvarova (National Aviation University, )

Tourist air transportations in Ukraine

The modern state of tourist air transportations has been analyzed, the possibility of expansion of low-cost air transportations and prospects of their development in the regions of Ukraine have been demonstrated.

Aviation and tourism are closely connected and are dynamically developing in our state. Aviation opens new horizons and possibilities for travel enthusiasts, while tourists provide the volumes for air transportations and their dynamics. A lot of researches are devoted to the problem of tourist air transportations. In this context theoretical generalizations of M. Malska, V.Hudo are worth looking at [3]. Some aspects of tourist air transportations are considered by O.Liubitseva [2], V. Pestushko [4]. The aim of this research is to analyze the current state, problems and prospects of tourist air transportations in Ukraine. On the modern stage of society development tourists are one of the most active categories of air transport passengers. According to the data of Government aviation service of Ukraine, the volumes of tourist transportations by the Ukrainian have considerably increased over the last years [5]. Passengers transportation was carried out by 21 national airlines, among which the leading position was occupied by "International Ukrainian Airlines", "Rose of winds", "Asur Air Ukraine", "" and "Bravo". According to the results of 2018, five biggest air-passengers services have transported 11620,6 thousand people, that is by 20,2 % more than in 2017, and makes up nearly 93 % of the general volumes of passenger transportations of the Ukrainian airlines. Over 50% of all passenger transportations of the national airlines make up international regular transportations. In 2018 in accordance with the ratified air traffic timetable, regular international flights were carried out by 10 national airlines to 46 countries of the world. The amount of passengers that used the Ukrainian air carriers grew by 16,4 % and comprised 6796,2 thousand people. Simultaneously with the increase in intensity of flights the network of routes was developed to many directions. Thus, over 2018 the Ukrainian air carriers opened 17 new regular routes. In the meantime, foreign airlines business expansion also took place at the Ukrainian market. Five new foreign airlines executed regular flights to Ukraine. 2018 also marked the development of foreign airlines rout network which began exploitation of 27 international air-tracks. On the whole, 38 foreign airlines executed flights to our country from 37 countries of the world in 2018. Their services were used by 6857,3 thousand passengers, that is by 37,8 % more than in 2017 and comprises 50,2% of general volume of regular passenger transportations between Ukraine and the world countries.

33.31 A considerable increase (by 23,1%) was observed in charter transportations. These are single or seasonal flights, that are executed by airlines on the order of tour operators or other people interested in the flight [3]. Their frequency and directions depend on tourist demand and considerably hesitate due to seasons. Basic charter flights directions in Ukraine are mass tourist routes to Turkey, Egypt, Tunis, Bulgaria, Greece, Croatia, Malta and other countries of the world. Sixteen Ukrainian airlines served 4649,9 thousand tourists in 2018. Herewith, almost 84% of transportations were carried out by five the above-mentioned airlines. Also the activation of regular transportations within Ukraine continued in 2018. Four national airlines executed internal passenger transportations on the regular basis. They provided air connections between ten cities of Ukraine. 1071,4 thousand air passengers were transported over the last year, that is by 15,1 % more than in 2017. According to Aviation transport strategy to 2030, one of the tasks of Ukrainian aviation transport development is the expansion of low-cost airlines, that are ready to work in a reasonable price segment [1].The positive consequences of introduction of low cost carriers in Ukraine can be seen on the example of Lviv. Thus, in 2017, the amount of flights within "Airport "Lviv" increased by 37%, and the passengers flow - by 50%. At the end of 2017 the International airport "Lviv" named by Danylo Halytskyi served a millionth passenger. The last time the millionth passenger was recorded was in 1991 [6]. Low-cost carriers is a key factor of stimulation of the regional airports development, as well as the development of the related infrastructure in Ukraine. It is a chance to increase the volumes of transportations, to increase an income from non-aviation activity, to improve the tourist attractiveness of the region and, as a result, to stimulate its economic development. Currently, two biggest low-cost airlines - Ryanair (Ireland) and Wizz Air (Hungary) execute flights from , Lviv and Kharkiv to 60 destinations. This summer, Odesa is going to be added to the list of the Ukrainian cities, which these carriers fly from. Prices on Hungarian low-cost carrier depend on the selected date and on the flight work-load. This carrier very often promotes offers for passengers. Due to such discounts it is possible to save from 20 to 50% of cost of service. In addition to this, membership in Wizz Club gives an extra discount. Standard membership costs 30 euros per year and allows buying tickets and luggage with a discount not only for the passenger but also for the partner travelling with him/her. Among other low-cost airlines it is necessary to highlight Pegasus Airlines (Turkey) and Ernest Airlines (Italy). The Turkish carrier, founded in Istanbul with hubs in several domestic airports, is a good alternative for the Ukrainian charters. All flights are carried through Turkey with transfers. The Italian with the headquarters in Milan, serves the Italian, Albanian, Ukrainian and Romanian markets. Main flights are carried between Italy and Albania, Ukraine, Romania and Spain. The national low-cost carrier SkyUр, that began flights in May, 2018, currently, serves mainly charter flights from Kyiv, Kharkiv, Lviv and Odesa. There are presently 16 directions in SkyUp (a request is given on 55 voyages) : Antalya,

33.32 Bodrum, Dalaman (Turkey), Charm-el-sheikh, Hurghada (Egypt), Tivat (Montenegro), Barcelona, Palma de Mallorka, Tenerife, Alicante (Spain), Tirana (Albania), Rimini (Italy), Burgas, Varna (Bulgaria), Larnaca (Cyprus), Dubai (UАЕ). Also the internal low-cost flights are planned: Kyiv-Odesa, Kyiv-Lviv, Lviv-Odesa, Kharkiv-Odesa. At present, this company cooperates with a tour operator JoinUp. That is why prices are reasonable only when dealing with this company. Development of budgetary airlines must provide a rapid increase in an annual passenger flow in regional and local airports to 8 million, change the regional structure of passenger flow and provide the considerable growth in GDP in regions (by 0,765 milliard hrn. by 2030) [6]. The Boryspil airport remains a leader in tourist service, and is presently developing as the international hub. Hub is an airport through which tourists travel from different countries and cities in order to change planes with a maximal comfort in a few hours and continue their trip to the destination. At the same time, the Ministry of infrastructure priority is the renewal and development of regional airports. An important issue in regional aviation transport development is the governmental decision to spend money on the repair of airports runways in Mykolaiv, Odesa and Vinnytsya. For air transportations of passengers, including tourists, it is also planned to create modern airports in Bila Tserkva, Zhytomyr, Nizhyn. In March 2019, after a three-years break, the airport of Uzhhorod renewed its work. The development of air communication in regions, offers new transport-logistic opportunities for tourists. Despite the positive trends in tourist air transportations, there are a number of problems. Among them are the following: the necessity of increase in carrying capacity of regional airports, the improvement of their infrastructure, providing the safety of flights that are served mainly by leased planes with the inappropriate technical state. It is also necessary to concentrate on the improvement of network of air transportations by further liberalization of air transport, observance of passengers and flights organizers rights and duties, to stimulate the reduction of unreasonable taxes. In the nearest future, it is necessary to develop new budgetary flights with the comfortable flight schedule and top-quality tourist service. Thus, as a result of the analysis performed it is observed that the volumes of tourist air transportations in Ukraine have increased over the last few years. The Ukrainian airlines access to the markets of Europe and other regions of the world has considerably increased. On the whole, there was a rise in the level of regional airports development. Also we observed a considerable increase in attraction of low- cost airlines to the Ukrainian market. The transfer potential of Ukraine is being gradually achieved. All the above-mentioned facilitates the increase in tourist mobility, the competitiveness of air transport, and the positive tourist image of our country.

References 1. The influence of the development of budget airlines on the economy of Ukraine 2030. - [Electronic resource]. - Access mode. - https://mtu.gov.ua/projects/166/.

33.33 2. O.O.Liubitseva. Travel services market. - /О.О. Liubitseva. – К.: Alterpres, 2002. – 436 с. 3. Malskaya MP, Khudo V.V. Travel Business: Theory and Practice. Tutorial. - / MP Malskaya, V.V. Honey - K .: Center for Educational Literature, 2012 - P. 156- 158. 4. V.Y. Pestushko. Tourist air transportations and tourism: the peculiarities of convergence. -/ V.Y. Pestushko. //Geography and Tourism. – 2018. – Vol.44. – P. 3- 11. 5. Statistics in airtransport. - [Electronic resource]. - Access mode. - https://mtu.gov.ua/content/statistichni-dani-v-galuzi-aviatransportu.html. 6. Uvarova G. Sh. Innovative projects in tourist air transportations in Ukraine / G. Sh. Uvarova // The Eighth World Congress "Aviation in the XXI-st century" – "Safety in Aviation and Space Technologies", National Aviation University, Kyiv, Ukraine on October 10-12, 2018.

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