Aeroflot to create a budget carrier by 2025

Russia’s flagship airline Aeroflot plans to increase its passenger traffic fourfold through the creation of budget and charter airlines. Aeroflot already announced earlier this year its intention to create a budget airline out of the six smaller airlines it acquired in February. It has been touted that Orenburg Airlines will become the Russian airline’s charter subsidiary. Such bold expansion plans is the only way Aeroflot can meet its target to increase revenues to $18 billion by 2025 (current revenues stands at $4.5 billion). However, critics have questioned the viability of these plans given the lack of aircraft on order and