Malev increases capacity ahead of soccer finals

Malev Hungarian Airlines is clearly trying to appeal to soccer enthusiasts by increasing capacity on its Budapest to Moscow route tomorrow, in order to accommodate fans of the Champions League, to be held in the Russian capital on May 21^st. Hungary’s flag carrier is reportedly increasing its capacity on this route by 30 percent, mainly by dispatching a large Boeing 737-800 aircraft, in order to address the significantly higher demand that is being experienced on this route.

One of the main reasons why the number of travellers to Moscow is expected to increase dramatically during the Champions League is because Russia’s newly minted president, Dmitry Medvedev, has agreed to lift cumbersome visa requirements for foreigner visitors. According to a report on Malev’s website, foreigners may travel to Russia on May 21^st and remain in the country until May 25^th, without having to apply for a tourist visa. Passengers will, however, be required to produce tickets showing that they are, indeed, going to the match and they also need a valid passport.

Many of the foreign visitors will actually be from the United Kingdom, rather than Hungary-where soccer is also hugely popular-mainly because they are looking forward to the battle between Manchester United and Chelsea. If projections turn out to be accurate, an extra 250 commercial airplanes will be needed, in order to transport all the fans to Moscow.

Although Malev currently only plans to use its Boeing 737-800 aircraft for one day, immediately before the tournament, the Hungarian flag carrier has indicated that it is willing to keep flying larger planes from Budapest to Moscow, if high passenger traffic remains constant on this route.

www.malev.hu