Budget airline. Who are lowcosters

When planning a trip, one of the most important questions that arises is where and how to buy cheap flights. I will write about how to buy a ticket a little later, in this article I will talk about such a phenomenon as low-cost airlines(low cost). This is budget airlines(they are also called discount airlines), whose tickets are several times cheaper than those of regular airlines (unless they have some kind of promotion). There are now more than 150 such low-cost airlines in the world, there are plenty to choose from, so to speak.

• Most often, the level of service of low-cost airlines is no worse, and sometimes even better, than that of regular airlines. The secret rather lies in the fact that these airlines are trying to save money wisely on optional things. For example, they do not have sales offices, there are no intermediary travel agencies, an air ticket is bought via the Internet, and you can fly simply by booking a printout that comes to your e-mail.
• Another important difference between low-cost airlines is that if you cancel a flight, the money for the ticket is most likely not returned and there are no miles for frequent travel.
• You also need to keep in mind that low-cost airlines have strict restrictions on the weight of luggage, sometimes you have to pay for luggage separately, and if this is not done when booking a ticket, then you will have to pay twice as much at the airport.
• Since the price of a ticket in discount airlines is formed based on the occupancy of the aircraft, the closer the departure date, the more expensive the ticket. Therefore, if you want to fly cheaper, try to buy lowster tickets well in advance. The earlier you buy a ticket, the cheaper you will fly.
• For some flights, you need to check in yourself via the Internet, otherwise you will have to pay extra for it at the airport. My advice to you is to read carefully the conditions of the airline on its website and on the ticket.
• Most discount airlines do not provide free meals during the flight, but you can always buy it on board if necessary. And low-cost airlines often use secondary airports that are less busy, which allows passengers to go through all the procedures on arrival faster, and the low-cost airline itself to increase the frequency of flights. The only possible inconvenience may be the time of departure, the possible delay of the flight and the remoteness of the secondary airport, but this is not always the case.

The most important low-cost airline in Asia - AirAsia

There are convenient flight ticket search engines by low-cost airlines, which show which low-cost airlines fly to the city you need. These sites only give you the names of the low cost airlines you can use. In order to buy a ticket, you will need to go to the website of the low-cost airline itself and book a cheap air ticket there.

There are also sites that flight search for all airlines(both low-cost and conventional) and destinations:

We mostly use them when searching for tickets. Firstly, you can immediately estimate the order of prices, and secondly, these services are often enough.

Air discounters in Russia

There used to be avianova and skyexpress, but on this moment there are no more low-cost airlines in Russia. That's it. Therefore, it is often cheaper to fly to Europe than somewhere in Russia.

Low-cost airlines flying from Russia to Europe

airberlin.com (from Moscow and St. Petersburg to many German cities with transit to other European cities)
eurowings.com (from Moscow and St. Petersburg to German cities with transit to other European cities)
flyniki.com (departure from Moscow and St. Petersburg to Vienna)
norwegian.no (from St. Petersburg to Oslo with further transit through Northern Europe)
flypgs.com (departure from Krasnodar and Novosibirsk to Turkey)
vueling.com (departure from Moscow to Barcelona)
volawindjet.it (departure from Moscow, Samara, St. Petersburg, Rostov to Italian cities)
flydubai.com (departure from Yekaterinburg and Samara to Dubai)
blue1.com (departure from Moscow and St. Petersburg to Helsinki, and from there to Paris, London, Dusseldorf)

Low-cost airlines flying from Kyiv

wizzair.com (departure from Kyiv to Oslo, Cologne, London, Venice, Dortmund, Krakow, Simferopol)
airarabia.com (departure from Kyiv to Abu Dhabi, Athens, Dubai, Doha, Colombo, Delhi)

Budget airlines in Europe

airbaltic.com Europe
airberlin.com Europe
blue1.com Europe
blueair-web.com Europe
bmibaby.com UK
brusselsairlines.com Europe and the world
clickair.com Europe
condor.com Europe
easyjet.com Europe
flug.idealo.de Germany, Europe, world
flyaeroflight.de Germany - Europe
flybe.com UK - Europe
flyglobespan.com Almost the whole world
flyniki.at Austria - Europe
flynordic.com Europe
flysas.com Europe and the world
germania.aero Germany, Kosovo, Macedonia
eurowings.com Europe
tuifly.com/en/ Europe
icelandexpress.co.uk Reykjavik - Europe
jet2.com UK - Europe
laudaair.com Austria - Europe
meridiana.it Italy – Europe
norwegian.n o Europe and the world
ryanair.com Europe and the world
skyeurope.com Europe
smartwings.net Prague - Europe
spanair.com Europe
transavia.com Amsterdam - Europe
thomsonfly.com Europe
vueling.com Barcelona - Europe

“Low-cost airline… What is it? - many novice travelers will ask. - How can they help us in planning the itinerary? Is it worth using their services?

Let's try to figure it out together, because it is these budget companies that make flights from one part of the world to another affordable not only for the rich, but also for passengers of average, and sometimes even low material wealth.

What do low-cost companies offer?

It is unlikely that anyone will dare to deny the fact that air travel plays a huge role in the modern world. And this, perhaps, is not surprising.

High speed of movement in space is highly valued today. However, the reasonable cost of air tickets is no less important. That is why a question like “Low-cost airline - what is it?” should not even occur today. It is necessary not only to know about the existence of such companies, but also to actively resort to their services.

The desire to increase the number of passengers who use by air, led American companies in the second half of the 20th century to develop the concept that the flight could be made at a minimal cost. How? Due to the refusal of additional passenger services.

From the United States, the concept of low cost penetrated first to Europe, and then to other parts of the world.

Originally, the term "low-cost airlines" referred to organizations whose operating cost structure was comparatively lower than that of competitors.

Today, this definition is applied to various carriers offering a limited range of passenger services. By the way, when answering the question: “Low-cost airline ... what is it?” - you should not take into account regional companies operating on short flights with limited service.

Characteristic features of this kind of transportation

To imagine what the business model of these companies consists of, it is necessary to find out what distinguishes it from other similar ones.

For example, the Aeroflot low-cost airline, as in principle any other company in the world, has the following characteristic features:

• All passenger seats belong to the same class.
• As a rule, such airlines use one type of aircraft in order to reduce the costs required for servicing various types of equipment and training personnel.
• Application of a simplified ticket payment scheme. Today widely used e-tickets. Low-cost carriers promote them via the Internet. This means that you can book a flight in the presence of the World Wide Web, being or living in any corner of the globe.
• The organization of transportation is carried out in such a way as to ensure the operation of insufficiently loaded runways. Why? The thing is that at such airports there are lower fees, so it becomes possible to reduce various kinds of costs.
• Intensive exploitation technical means(in one day the plane makes several flights, which seemed impossible a couple of decades ago).
• Preference is given to direct flights.
• The set of services, as a rule, is reduced.
• Optimization of the work of airline employees by performing several functions at once.

The history of the emergence and formation of low-cost airlines

The idea of ​​budget transportation has always been attractive. Decisions were made to increase the number seats in airplanes. The carriers used old aircraft with a new logo.

The intensification of the use of winged vehicles sometimes became so high that downtime on the ground was practically reduced to zero.

The first low cost airline in the US is Southwest Airlines. It should be noted that European low-cost airlines have already learned from her.

Initially, she carried out transportation in the state of Texas. At that time, the company could not organize relocations to other states due to the prohibition of existing laws. To increase the popularity of flights, charming girls were attracted as flight attendants. Uniforms emphasized their delightful appearance and impeccable figure.

In Europe, the first company of this kind was Ryanair. It began to carry passengers in 1985, but it began to function as a real budget low-cost airline in 1998. This was due to the abolition of preferences for national air carriers.

It is interesting to note that low-cost airlines currently operate in all parts of the world except Antarctica. Since 2012, this type of air carrier has existed even in Africa, and in the Philippines, almost 65% of passengers travel by air with low-cost airlines.

Are there any disadvantages of this type of transportation?

Today, there are so many budget companies that they are forced to compete with each other. In this regard, some of them began to attract passengers, offering first-class conditions, satellite TV, of course, for an additional fee.

In the UK, the problem of deliberate underestimation of the advertised airfare is actively discussed - the declared price, as a rule, does not include taxes and fees. All additional payments are not refundable if the flight is canceled due to the fault of the company. The fact that hand luggage is subject to a high fine is also criticized if it is found to exceed the weight allowed by the rules. By the way, low-cost airlines in Asia also practice this.

Why are there so few budget airlines in Russia?

In Russia, too, there have been attempts to properly organize low-cost airlines.

In 2006, within the framework of the budgetary tariff policy, the Sky Express corporation began to operate. At that time, the cost of any ticket was 500 rubles.

In 2009, the Avianova company determined the cost of a ticket at 250 rubles. But for a long time they could not work on such conditions. The reasons for abandoning the business model of the budgetary company were that it was not possible to increase the volume of traffic in such a way as to reach the required indicators. The fleet of aircraft in these companies was small, so there were constant problems with flight delays. Due to the fact that the cost of servicing the liners began to increase, the companies were forced to cease to exist.

It should be noted purely technical points. A serious problem for the development of low-cost transportation in Russia has become a model of manual control, while this type of transportation involves the automation of all processes to provide passengers with a minimum set of services. Fast repair, timely receipt of the required spare parts, availability transport support remote airports, the ability to quickly service aircraft that spend a minimum amount of time at the airport - all this is rather problematic in Russia. In addition, Russian officials do not have the skill to make quick decisions in response to proposals from budget companies.

Duties on foreign cars, which were introduced by the government of our country, also played a role, and did not allow low-cost carriers to significantly reduce costs to the level required for normal development.

And the complexity of Russian laws creates obstacles for the development of airlines offering passengers only necessary services and cheap tickets. Considering all of the above, it becomes clear why the statements: “Low-cost airline? What is it? Cheap tickets? No, that doesn't happen!" - are most often asked in Russia, in Europe or, say, in the USA, such services are the norm

Dobrolet is a modern Russian carrier

In August 2013, the Board of Directors of Aeroflot decided to develop the Dobrolet low-cost airline. Its leader was the former head of Avianova.

It is planned that the company will initially fly 8 aircraft. By 2018, the aircraft fleet is expected to expand to 40.

All additional services - only for a fee. Check-in for the flight will be carried out via the Internet. The planned cost of tickets is 40% lower than the average fare of a classic Russian airline.

The route network involves moving from Moscow to St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Kazan, Kaliningrad, Samara, Tyumen, Krasnodar and back from these cities to Moscow.

Wizz Air is the main low-cost airline in Ukraine, Poland, Hungary

The Hungarian-Polish air transportation company has been operating in Ukraine since 2008. In 2013, it carried out flights on only one domestic route - Kyiv-Simferopol.

Wizz Air is trying to enter the Russian market, but this process is difficult due to the rather stringent requirements imposed by Rosaviatsiya. Aeroflot's low-cost airline is perhaps the only, albeit domestic, company that has been able to stay there for a long time.

Nevertheless, Wizz Air does not abandon plans to increase traffic and expand its geography.

Finnair is the largest Finnish airline

It should be noted that Finnair is considered the safest in Europe. Not a single emergency has been recorded since 1963. Russian low-cost airlines, as well as many other organizations of this kind, should learn from her.

The origin of Finnair dates back to 1924. Today it is a stable company.

Passenger reward programs, a special class for children, lounge management - all contribute to the growth in popularity. As of 2012, the airline's traffic volume amounted to 9 million people.

Air Arabia - Arab low cost airline

Air Arabia is the first major carrier in the Middle East. Today it provides transportation services to 76 countries of the world. The headquarters is located 15 km from the center of Dubai.

In 2007, Air Arabia established another base, this time in Nepal's capital. The difficult economic and political situation in this region contributed to the fact that the company's activities had to be temporarily suspended.

In 2009, Air Arabia created a new company in Egypt, which was supposed to be based in Alexandria. Growth in the volume of passenger and cargo transportation, expansion of the range of paid additional services, a variety of entertainment systems - just what low-cost airlines in Russia can envy.

Air Arabia is implementing all this step by step, achieving stability in work.

Qantas Airways is Australia's largest airline

"Flying Kangaroo" is the nickname of Qantas Airways. It is one of the oldest organizations whose shares can be bought and sold on the ASX.

In 2007, this company was ranked 3rd in the world by Skytrax research. The company's net profit in 2005-2006 financial year amounted to 350 billion 45 million dollars. International and domestic shipments are very popular.

By the way, Qantas Airways is considered the safest in the world, as its jet aircraft never had an accident.

Kingfisher Red is India's first low cost carrier

Frequent travelers know that Kingfisher Red is based in Bangalore.

It has been operating for quite a long time, and the first flight to Hubballi from Bangalore was made in 2003. Founder G. R. Gopinath aspired to create a company that could provide every Indian with the opportunity to take air travel.

To date, this Kingfisher Red is actively competing with GoAir, Indigo, SpiceJet. As a result of this competition, passengers benefit as airfare prices go down.

Ryanair flies from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Finland. And this is very convenient for the Russians. The flight map is available at the link.

Ryanair also acquired the Austrian low-cost Laudamotion (formerly Amira Air) with hubs in Vienna and a number of German cities.

Wizz Air (Hungary)

It flies from Moscow and St. Petersburg to Debrecen to Budapest, where its main hub is located. The company has 420 routes in Europe and 25 hubs. The most convenient for Russians: Gdansk, Kutaisi, Vilnius, Riga, Chisinau. Flight map.

If you plan to fly Wizz Air more than once a year or fly with a company, then buy a membership to the Wizz Air Discount Club.

EasyJet (UK)

EasyJet stopped flying from Moscow to London in September 2015. However, the company has a large route network in Europe. The company flies to 32 countries, 134 cities and has 23 bases. The largest is Gatwick Airport in London. Large hubs are located in Milan and Barcelona (where our Pobeda flies), as well as in Paris, Berlin, Rome, Amsterdam, Lisbon, Basel. Flight map.

Pobeda (Russia)

Pobeda has been flying since December 2014. Ticket prices start at Rs. The company now has over 50 destinations. Pobeda flies to Finland, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Czech Republic, Montenegro, Turkey, Slovakia (and from there it is taken by bus to Austria), Armenia and Georgia.

It is worth noting that Pobeda often reduces prices a few days before departure.

Norwegian Air (Norway)

It flies within Europe from Scandinavian cities and between Scandinavian cities (more than 100 destinations). It flies to the USA on a budget (Boston, Chicago, New York, Orlando, Los Angeles). Flight map.

These were the main low-cost airlines in Europe. Start your search with them. The ones below you probably won't need.

Air Baltic (Latvia)

Latvian airline, the main hub is in Riga. Prices are higher than other low-cost airlines, but luggage is also paid, they do not feed you on flights. They fly from Kazan, Kaliningrad, Sochi, St. Petersburg, Moscow. Route map link. You can join the airBaltic Club and get a free ticket for 10 flights with the airline.

Helvetic Airways (Switzerland)

Airlines from Switzerland. The company's hub in Zurich, plus flights from 7 airports. Most flights operate once a week. The company's fleet consists of small aircraft: Embraer 190 and Fokker 100.

UIA (Ukraine)

Ukrainian national carrier. No more flights from Russia. Not a low cost, but he often good prices for flights to Europe and Asia due to the fall of the hryvnia.

SmartWings (Czech Republic)

It flies from Moscow to Prague at a price slightly cheaper than Aeroflot and Czech Airlines. From Prague there is a wide choice of flights across Europe plus Egypt, Israel, UAE.

Transavia (Netherlands)

Low cost of Air France-KLM holding. It has five hubs in the Netherlands (including Amsterdam). It flies mainly to southern Europe plus Morocco and Egypt. Flight map. Transavia has a subsidiary, Transavia France, with three hubs in France and similar destinations.

Air Lingus (Ireland)

The largest Irish airline (not counting Ryanair, of course). They fly to 190 cities, including the US and Canada. Flight map.

blue air (Romania)

Romanian low-cost with the main hub in Bucharest with a large number of destinations in Europe (flight map). There are also several routes from Helsinki.

Israir Airlines (Israel)

An Israeli airline with the slogan "Why pay more?" Cheap compared to El Al. Flies to Europe, but most flights are seasonal.

Logan Air (Scotland)

Regional Scottish carrier. Flies throughout Scotland, including the Orkney Islands and the Outer Hebrides. The route from Westray Island to Papa Westray Island (Orkney) is the shortest scheduled commercial flight in the world. In good weather, it's only 47 seconds in the air. In addition to British territories, it also flies to Norway. Flight map.

Atlantic Airways (Faroe)

National carrier Faroe Islands. They fly from Denmark, Norway, Iceland and Scotland, plus in the season from Spain. Offers the cheapest way to get to the Faroe Islands from Copenhagen. A round-trip ticket costs from 160 euros. Prices for flights between the islands by helicopters - from 12 to 60 euros one way.

Buta Airways (Azerbaijan)

In September 2017, a new low-cost airline Buta Airways began flying from Baku to Russia. While flying to Moscow (Vnukovo), St. Petersburg, Minvody and Kazan. Attention! Tickets at the minimum fare "BUDGET" do not provide for any baggage or hand luggage. Generally.

French Bee (France)

French low-cost airline offering flights from Paris-Orly to the Dominican Republic, San Francisco, Reunion and French Polynesia.

wow air (Iceland)

WOW Air: Icelandic low-cost airline that has flights to the US from $55. In general, it operates flights from 32 cities, mainly in Europe. Experiencing financial difficulties, and may soon be taken over by another company.

IcelandAir: not a low-cost, but an indispensable company for traveling to Iceland (and for around the world travel). The main feature is a stopover up to 7 days in Iceland during a flight from Europe to the USA.

Fantasy, right?

Italy: Air Italy, Blu Express, FlyErnest

• Air Italy (former Meridiana) : the main flights are from Milan and Olbia. In addition to flights within Italy (about 30 euros one way), it flies to Africa, Asia, the USA and Canada.
• Blu Express: low-cost subsidiary of Blue Panorama Airlines with a hub in Rome. It flies mainly in Italy, a little more expensive than Air Italy (40-50 euros one way).
• FlyErnest — rather, even an Albanian, and not an Italian airline (although the headquarters is in Milan). They carry from nine Italian cities to Tirana. Since 2017 they have been flying from Lviv, Kyiv and Kharkov to the main Italian cities. Tickets from 37 euros one way.

Spain: Vueling,Volotea,canaryfly , LEVEL , Iberia Express

• Vueling : the second largest Spanish carrier with a hub in Barcelona. From Moscow and St. Petersburg flies to Barcelona and Alicante from 50 euros one way. Operates seasonal flights from regions: Kazan, Kaliningrad, Krasnodar, Samara. .
• Volotea: Spanish low-cost airline headquartered in Barcelona. Most flights are mediterranean region, including small towns France, Italy, Spain, Greece. Often holds sales with tickets for 10 euros. Flight map.
• canaryfly: small airline with canary islands. Flies between the islands from 5 euros one way.
• LEVEL: subsidiary of Iberia and british airways. It flies from Spain (and also Paris-Orly) to the USA, Canada and Latin America. Prices for transatlantic flights start at 95 euros one way. Tickets can be purchased at flylevel.com.
• Iberia Express: subsidiary low-cost Iberia. It flies from Madrid to Europe, to the Canary and Balearic Islands. Flight map.

Germany:Euro Wings,germany,TUI Fly,Condor

• Euro Wings: a subsidiary of Lufthansa. It flies to 210 destinations, mainly in Europe. Prices for flights from 30 euros in Germany, from 45 euros in Europe one way.
• Germany is a private airline headquartered in Berlin. There are charters to the Middle East, resorts mediterranean sea and to North Africa. Plus flies from St. Petersburg to Dresden (from 60 euros one way). Flight map.
• TUI Fly— low-cost with a hub in Hannover. Part of the TUI Group, one of the largest travel companies in the world. It flies from Moscow and St. Petersburg. In addition to the German airline, there are other divisions of TUI Fly (for example, the Belgian one).
• Condor: subsidiary airline Lufthansa with a hub in Frankfurt am Main. It has a charter bias to exotic countries: the Caribbean, Africa, Asia, South America, the islands of Spain, Portugal, etc. A very favorable price for a one-way flight (unlike traditional airlines).

UK: Flybe, Jet2, TUI Airways

• Flybe: low-cost carrier with hubs in Birmingham and Manchester. Fly to 85 destinations across the UK and Western Europe. Flight map.
• Jet2.com: a low-cost carrier that mainly flies from major UK cities to Southern Europe. Flight map.
• TUI Airways: British version of TUI fly. It flies from 20 UK airports to Europe, Asia, Africa and the Caribbean.

Turkey:Onurair, Anadolujet, Corendon, Sun Express, Atlas Global

• Onur Air flies between cities and resorts in Turkey. There are flights to the main Turkish cities from Moscow and Odessa. In addition to regular flights, there are charters from the regions.
• Anadolujet- a subsidiary of Turkish Airlines, operates flights in Turkey and Northern Cyprus.
• Sun Express is a subsidiary of Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines. Flies to Germany, Austria and Switzerland. There is a summer flight from St. Petersburg to Izmir from 66 euros. Flight map.
• Corendon- Turkish low-cost airline based in Antalya, flying mainly to Germany.
• Atlas Global- former Atlas Jet. It flies in Turkey, to Europe and to Asia. From Russia is regular flight from Moscow to Istanbul plus charters from the regions. Flight map.

Moldova:Air Moldova,fly one

• Air Moldova: national carrier of Moldova. Not a low-cost, but quite often inexpensive flights via Chisinau to Rome, Lisbon, Larnaca, Bologna, Venice and other cities from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Surgut, Krasnodar, Yekaterinburg, Nizhny Novgorod.
• flyone: a young Moldovan airline that was certified in March 2016. You can fly from Moscow to Chisinau from 60 euros one way.

Asia (48)

Malaysia:air Asia,firefly

• Air Asia : For many years - the best low-cost airline in the world according to Skytrax. Has an extensive route network throughout Asia (from India, Malaysia to Vietnam, the Philippines, Japan), including flights to Australia. . Plus owns divisions in other countries of the region.

• firefly: low-cost subsidiary of Malaysia Airlines. In addition to domestic flights, there are flights to Indonesia and Thailand. Flight map.

UAE:air arabia,Fly Dubai

• Air Arabia. Low-cost carrier based in Sharjah. Departures from Moscow and Grozny to the cities of the Near and Middle East (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan), North Africa(Sudan, Egypt, Morocco), India, Nepal, Bangladesh via Sharjah (UAE). Flight map. There are regional divisions of Air Arabia Egypt with a hub in Alexandria, Air Arabia Maroc with a hub in Casablanca and Air Arabia Jordan with a hub in Amman.
• FlyDubai. Low-cost carrier based in Dubai. Flights to the UAE and cities of Asia and Africa from Russian cities (Moscow, Kazan, Yekaterinburg, Makhachkala, Minvody, Samara, Krasnodar, Rostov-on-Don). Quite often, a good cost of a flight from the regions to Nepal, Sri Lanka, India. Plus a good grid in East Africa: Addis Ababa, Dar es Salaam, Djibouti, Juba, Khartoum, Kilimanjaro, Zanzibar. Flight map.

Singapore:tiger air,Scoot

Tiger Air and scoot: since 2017, there is actually one airline operating under the Scoot brand. Subsidiary of Singapore Airlines. The "tigers" were left with a separate brand in Australia. It flies to Asia and to Australia plus to Berlin, Athens and Hawaii.

Flight map:

India: IndiGo, SpiceJet, Air India Express, Go Air

• indigo: Indian low-cost airline with domestic flights and a small number of international routes to Nepal, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Oman, Thailand and other countries in the region. Flight map.
• SpiceJet: A major Indian airline with hubs in Delhi and Hyderabai and Chennai. Flights to 49 cities in India and to Oman, UAE, Maldives, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Hong Kong, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. Flight map.
• Air India Express: subsidiary low-cost of the national carrier. Offers fewer domestic flights but more international flights (mainly to countries Persian Gulf). Flight map.
• Go Air: low-cost carrier with the main hub in Mumbai, operates mainly domestic flights to 25 cities (plus Male and Phuket). Flight map.

Japan: Vanilla Air,Peach Aviation,Air Do, Skymark, Solaseed Air, Star Flyer

• Vanilla Air : subsidiary low-cost All Nippon Airways. It flies between Japanese cities, as well as to Taiwan and Hong Kong. One way flights start at $30.
• Peach Aviation : Peach Airlines flies from Osaka, Naha and Tokyo throughout Japan (including Okinawa), as well as to Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea, Shanghai and Bangkok. Flight map.
• AirDo: regional airline: the main direction is flights to Hokkaido. Not low-cost, but there are favorable tariffs for early booking(75 days in advance) or discount when booking 1 or 3 days before the flight.
• skymark: low-cost with a dozen destinations within the country. There are discounts for 1 or 3 days before departure.
• Solaseed Air: Almost like Skymark, but more discount options by date of purchase plus a discount for foreign tourists.
• star flyer: positions itself as an intermediate option between low-cost and conventional airlines. Offers flights between major Japanese cities plus to Taiwan. For domestic flights there is a special fare for foreigners (55-70 euros one way).

Philippines: Cebu Pacific, Air Swift

• Cebu Pacific: low-cost airline with a large number of domestic flights plus flies throughout Eastern and South-East Asia(and also in Sydney and Dubai). .
• Air Swift is a tiny company that connects Philippine cities with its El Nido airport. In fact, this airport is an ordinary primer in the jungle (it looks like this), but it is located on the island of Palawan, the source of 95% of those photos from the paradise islands.

Indonesia: Citilink , Wings Air

• Citilink: a low-cost subsidiary of the national carrier Garuda Indonesia. Carries out mainly domestic flights(plus flies to Malaysia and East Timor). Flight map.
• Wing Air : low-cost from Lion Air Group. Has a hub in Bali, specializes in domestic flights.

South Korea: Jeju Air , Jin Air , T'way Air , Eastar Jet , Air Seoul , Air Busan

• Jeju Air: the main low-cost, in addition to domestic flights, flies around the countries Far East and Southeast Asia, as well as Guam. There is a flight from Vladivostok to Seoul. Flight map.
• Jin Air: low-cost subsidiary of Korean Air. Flies throughout the region, including Hawaii, Australia and Guam. Flight map.
• T'way Air and Eastar Jet low cost hubs in Seoul. They fly to China, Japan and the countries of Southeast Asia. T'way Air has flights from Khabarovsk and Vladivostok to Daegu, while Eastar Jet has flights from Vladivostok to Seoul. Prices - from 50 euros one way.
• Air Seoul and Air Busan- subsidiaries of Asiana Airlines. They fly around the region to the indicated cities. Air Busan has a flight from Vladivostok.

China (10 airlines)

• Spring Airlines: low-cost with hubs in Shanghai. Route network in China and neighboring countries. There is a Japanese division of Spring Airlines Japan. Prices start at $15 one way.
• China United: low-cost with a hub at Beijing Nanyuan Airport and flights between Chinese cities. Tickets from $10 one way.
• Juneyao Airlines: a major airline with hubs in Shanghai. It has a very extensive route network in China, and also operates flights to South Korea, Japan and Thailand. Plans to launch a flight from Helsinki in 2019. It has a low-cost subsidiary 9 Air with a hub in Guangzhou.
• Lucky Air in addition to China flies to Brunei, Thailand, Malaysia. There is a flight from Moscow to Kunming.
• West Air flies within the country (flight map).
• Urumqi Air offers flights from Urumqi to China.
• Capital Airlines In addition to domestic flights, it offers many flights to Europe. There is a flight from Moscow to Qingdao.
• Colorful Guizhou Airlines : regional low-cost with a hub in Guiyang and flights within China.
• Jiangxi Air: regional low-cost with a hub in Nanchang.
• HK Express: Hong Kong low-cost from HNA Group. Flies from Hong Kong around the region, especially many flights to Japan. Flight map.

Thailand: Nok Air, Thai Lion Air

• Nok Air : Thai low-cost airline operating domestic flights within Thailand plus flights to Myanmar and other countries in the region. There are multiple routes with ferries (Fly'n'Ferry) or buses (Fly'n'Ride).
• Thai Lion Air: Thai division of the Indonesian company Lion Air Group. In addition to domestic flights, there are flights to many cities in China and to the main cities in the region. The nice thing is that luggage is included in the price. Flight map.

Other countries:

• SalamAir : Omani low cost. In addition to domestic flights, it flies to Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Nepal, Sudan, Bangladesh, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, as well as Baku and Tbilisi.
• Air Manas (Pegasus): Kyrgyz carrier. Subsidiary of Turkish Pegasus. Until the end of 2015, the airline flew under the Pegasus Asia brand, but now it has again become known as Air Manas. It makes three flights to Russia from Bishkek: to Moscow, Yekaterinburg and Novosibirsk
• air blue: Pakistani low-cost carrier with a hub in Karachi. It operates both domestic flights and flights to the UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia. Flight map.
• VietJet Air: Vietnamese low cost with several hubs in the country. It flies mainly in Vietnam. The site is not very convenient, the list of directions is easiest to see on Wikipedia. In addition to Vietnam, it flies to Bangkok, Taipei, Singapore, Seoul, Hong Kong, Yangon and Kuala Lumpur.
• Jazeera Airways: Kuwaiti low cost. In addition to the countries of the Persian Gulf and the Middle East, it flies to India, Egypt, Baku, Tbilisi and Istanbul. Flight map.
• Flynas: an airline from one of the most closed countries in the world - Saudi Arabia. It operates flights within the country, within the region plus to Tbilisi, Baku, Istanbul, Trabzon. Flight map.
• Flyadeal: a low-cost subsidiary of the national carrier Saudia. It flies between several cities within the country.
• Lanmei Airlines: Cambodian low-cost with a hub in Phnom Penh, owned by the Chinese. It flies in Southeast Asia and has many flights to China.
• Jetstar: a subsidiary of the Australian company Qantas. Main hub in Melbourne. In addition to flights within Australia and New Zealand, there are flights to the countries of Southeast Asia. There are also Jetstar Asia Airways with a hub in Singapore, Jetstar Pacific with a hub in Ho Chi Minh City and Jetstar Japan with hubs in Tokyo and Osaka. Flight map.
• Virgin Australia: Australian low-cost Virgin Group. Has four hubs in Australia, flies across Oceania, to Indonesia, Hong Kong and the USA

Africa (8)

South Africa: Mango, Kulula, FlySafair

• Mango: a low-cost subsidiary of the national carrier South African Airways with a hub in Johannesburg. It flies across South Africa and to the island of Zanzibar in Tanzania.
• Kulula: the first African low-cost airline, part of Comair, has been flying since 2001. The main flights are domestic, but thanks to the cooperation with Kenya Airways, they fly to Nairobi, and as part of Comair - to others neighbouring countries. Flight map.
• FlySafair : subsidiary low-cost Safair, connects six cities of the country.

Kenya: Fly540, JamboJet

• Fly540 : Kenyan low-cost carrier with a hub in Nairobi. Flies in Kenya, Zanzibar and South Sudan. Flight map. They have a subsidiary airline Fly Sax, which flies to safari and beach destinations.

• JamboJet: a low-cost subsidiary of the national carrier Kenya Airways with a hub in Nairobi. Flies in Kenya and Uganda.

Other countries:

• Arik Air (Nigeria): Nigerian traditional low-cost carrier that connects everything big cities Nigeria, and also flies to Angola, Ghana, Senegal and other West African countries.
• fastjet: a group of African low-cost airlines (includes Fastjet Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Mozambique). In addition to these countries, it also flies to South Africa and Zambia.
• Air Cairo (Egypt): low-cost subsidiary of EgyptAir. It flies from the main cities of Egypt to Europe. There are flights from Tbilisi to Hurghada and Sharm El Sheikh.

North and South America (30)

Canada:west jet,Sunwing Airlines, Porter Airlines, Air Transat, Air Canada Rouge, Flair Airlines

• WestJet : a major Canadian low-cost airline with hubs in Calgary, Toronto and Vancouver. Flights across North America and to the Caribbean plus seasonal transatlantic flights from Canada to Glasgow, Dublin, Paris (and a regular flight to London). Flight map. Recently launched ultra-low cost Swoop. While flights across Canada are launched, flights to the US and Mexico are planned.
• Sunwing Airlines: low-cost subsidiary of Sunwing Travel Group. It flies from Canadian cities to the USA, Central America and the Caribbean.

In the early 1990s and later in many countries around the world. Term low-cost is tracing paper with in English, where originally referred to all airlines with a lower operating cost structure than their competitors. While the term low-cost often applied to any airline with low prices for tickets and a limited range of services, regardless of their operating models, low-cost airlines not to be confused with regional airlines that operate short flights with no service or full service airlines with limited services.

Business model

A typical low-cost airline model usually (but not always) includes the following provisions:

• one passenger class
• one type of aircraft (usually Airbus A320 or Boeing 737), which reduces the cost of personnel training and maintenance of equipment
• a minimum set of additional equipment in the aircraft, usually there are no modern video and stereo systems, which allows you to reduce costs due to its purchase and maintenance
• a simple fare scheme, use of one form for round trips, and more recently no paper tickets per se are common, tickets are sold online.
• typically increasing the price of a ticket as the plane fills up to encourage early bookings
• lack of space in boarding passes(but not always - this is how seats are indicated on Airberlin boarding passes) i.e. encouraging passengers to board and take their seats faster
• using cheap, less crowded secondary airports and departing early in the morning or late in the evening to avoid possible delays due to air traffic congestion, as well as to save money from lower airport taxes
• quick turnover of aircraft (in order to maximize its load)
• simple routes, routes are built on a point-to-point basis (direct flights between airports) instead of bringing passengers to hubs (also in order to maximize the use of the aircraft and avoid delays associated with being late transit passengers and lost baggage between flights)
• reduction of the range of services provided to passengers on board the aircraft, exclusion from this range of services that are standard in other airlines (for example, distribution of soft drinks and meals to passengers), transfer of such services to the category of paid services
• receiving additional income from the sale of additional services on board the aircraft and goods
• emphasis on direct ticket sales, especially on the Internet (to avoid paying commissions to agents and reservation systems)
• employees perform several functions at once, for example, flight attendants, in addition to direct duties, also clean the cabin (in order to save the wage fund)
• Aggressive fuel cost hedging programs

Not every low-cost airline carries out the whole set of the above activities (for example, some low-cost airlines indicate boarding pass numbers, while others use more than one type of aircraft).

Story

First successful low-cost carrier were Pacific Southwest Airlines in the US who pioneered the concept low-cost, their first flight took place on May 6 . Often attributed to Southwest Airlines, which began operating in 1971 and has declared profits every year since 1973. After the deregulation of air travel in Europe, the Irish airline easyJet, created in 1995, achieved the most notable success. Low-cost airlines appeared in Asia and Oceania with 2000, Malaysian AirAsia and Australian Virgin Blue became the leading companies. Low-cost model proved to be applicable worldwide, but for its best application, market deregulation is needed air transportation. In 2006, new low-cost airlines were announced in Saudi Arabia and Mexico.

Low-cost airlines pose a serious threat to traditional full-service companies, as the high cost of traditional carriers does not allow them to successfully compete on price - the most important factor on which the consumer chooses low-cost carrier. From 2001 to 2003, when the airline industry was hit by terrorism, war and SARS, most traditional airlines suffered significant losses, while many low-cost airlines declared profits.

Many carriers have started to create their own low cost airlines, such as British Airways - Go, Air India - Air India-Express and United - Ted, but have found that they are picking up passengers from their main flights. The exceptions were bmibaby (owned by bmi, Lufthansa) and Jetstar (owned by Qantas), which are successfully operating in parallel with their full service counterparts.

In tourist destinations low-cost airlines compete with charter airlines.

Canada

India

Finland

Norway

Australia

First low-cost airline Australia became Compass which began operations in 1990 but soon ceased to exist. In 2000 Impulse and Virgin Blue started low-cost transportation between Australian cities in fierce competition with each other. Virgin Blue became Australia's second largest airline until Qantas bought Impulse and used a wet lease to build its low-cost divisions jetstar. Qantas created two low-cost carrier: JetStar competed with Virgin Blue in the domestic Australian market, and Australian Airlines began operating on Asian destinations. In 2006, Qantas took Australian Airlines' operations under a "wet lease", meaning that Australian Airlines crews and aircraft began to operate under the Qantas brand. In 2006, Qantas terminated the leasing agreement with Australian Airlines and began to develop the international destinations of its low-cost Jetstar brand.

New Zealand

Middle East

Asia

Japan

Criticism

Since the quantity low-cost airlines increases, they have to compete not only with traditional carriers, but also with each other. In the United States, airlines began to offer various types low-cost models. US Airways offers passengers first-class in-flight and airport lounges, while Frontier Airlines and JetBlue Airways offer satellite TV. Skybus Airlines, which sells advertising on the fuselage of its aircraft, began flying in 2007. In Europe, the emphasis has remained on cost reduction and simplified service. In 2004, Ryanair announced the possible elimination of reclining seats, anti-reflective glass, head restraints and seat pockets on aircraft. Some elements low-cost models are the focus of criticism from governments and aviation regulators, for example in the UK the issue of non-inclusion is widely discussed low-cost airlines(as, indeed, by other airlines) into the advertised ticket price of a number of expenses (airport fees, taxes, etc.), so that the cost of the flight seemed lower than it really is. .

Low-cost model on long-haul routes

The first airline to offer a simplified transatlantic service was Laker Airways, which offered the famous "Skytrain" service between London and New York in the late 1970s. The company exited the market when rivals British Airways and Pan Am were able to cut their ticket prices.

In 2004, the Irish airline Aer Lingus cut prices to compete with Euro-type companies. In late 2004 Canadian airline Zoom Airlines also offered transatlantic flights between Glasgow, Manchester, and Canada for 89l. Art.

Expected to appear on the market newest aircraft The A380, which can carry 853 passengers in an economy-only configuration, should drastically reduce costs on long-haul routes. On the other hand, such an aircraft should reduce costs so much in terms of passenger seat that the difference between a conventional carrier and a low-cost carrier may be negligible. In particular, low-cost carriers usually tend to use the aircraft as intensively as possible, planning the first flight early in the morning, and the last flight late in the evening. However, long-haul flight scheduling is time zone dependent (e.g. departing from the US East Coast in the evening, arriving in Europe the following morning), and longer flights provide less opportunity to increase fleet utilization as there are only one or two flights per day. .

April 2006 magazine Airline Business conducted an analysis of the potential of long-haul low-cost transportation and came to the conclusion that many Asian low-cost carriers, including AirAsia, are the closest to ideal low-cost airlines. On November 2, AirAsia X, a division of AirAsia and the Virgin Group, made its first flight from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to the Gold Coast, Australia.

In August 2006, Zoom Airlines announced plans to open a UK subsidiary, likely based in Gatwick, that would offer cheap flights from the US to India.

Long-haul low-cost flights include flights operated by the Australian airline Jetstar Airways between Australia and Osaka and Nagoya in Japan.

Low-cost airlines for business passengers

A recent trend is the creation of new low-cost airlines, exclusively operating in the long-haul business passenger market, with an aircraft with a regular class of service, initially on transatlantic destinations. Rather, their working principle can be described as less frills(less service) than no frills(no service), early market entrants including Eos Airlines, Maxjet Airways and Silverjet use Boeing 757 and Boeing 767 medium-sized twin-jet aircraft to operate profitable routes between London and East Coast USA.

European low cost airlines for Russians

With the advent of low-cost airlines, Russians got a cheap way to fly around Europe. For 30-35 euros ( average price ticket) with a visa, you can move around the entire Schengen area. Tickets are paid by payment from bank card in the Internet.

Russian regulators and airlines categorically oppose the entry of European budget companies to Russia, which is associated with lobbying, fear of competition and fear of losing monopoly profits.

Currently, Russians (especially residents of the North-West) can take advantage of a flight from:

1. Finland:

Helsinki (Blue1, Air Berlin, Ryanair);

2. Estonia: Tallinn (AirBaltic);

3. Latvia: Riga (AirBaltic);

4. Lithuania:

Vilnius (Ryanair);

5. Sweden: Stockholm/Nyköpping (AirBaltic).

6. Ukraine: Kyiv, Lvov, Odessa (

For some reason, it is generally accepted that there are no air discounters in Russia - well, except perhaps just appeared. Whether business in the West - at them discounters it is possible to depart from anywhere and anywhere, having paid for it 10 euros! In fact, of course, this is not the case, and the “freebie”, although it occurs from time to time, is not so frequent that it could be seriously counted on when planning a trip. However, today we are not talking about this, but about the fact that many European discounters also fly to Russia, which means that we can also fly somewhere relatively inexpensively compared to traditional airlines.

Of course, miracles do not happen: a ticket is cheaper not because of the altruism of the air carrier, but because of a lower level of service - starting with the fact that tickets cannot be returned () and ending with paid baggage transportation, lack of food (or rather, it is, but for an additional fee) and, often, connecting tickets. However, if you take tickets with a good margin for connection time, then even if you are late from your destination, you are more likely to fly further.

The fact is that discounters fly to Russia, as a rule, from their main hubs, which means that you can travel not only to the city where direct flights are operated, but also to a large list of further destinations. However, enough of the lyrics: let's move on to the specifics! Airlines are listed in alphabetical order.