Direct flights to Ulyanovsk are to reopen from Koltsovo International Airport (operated by Airports of Regions MC). The Red Wings Airlines will start its operations in May. The flights are scheduled within the regional air transportation subsidy programme co-financed by Sverdlovsk Region’s government.
Direct flights between Ekaterinburg and Ulyanovsk are scheduled starting on 3 May 2021 twice a week by Sukhoi Superjet 100 taking up to 100 passengers on board. The flight will depart from Koltsovo at 10:15 local time Mondays, and at 19:40 Thursdays. The travel time will be 2 hours. Until September 2014, flights to Ulyanovsk from Koltsovo had been operated by RusLine Airlines.
A total of 22 subsidised flights have been scheduled for 2021. In January-February, Red Wings, Yamal and RusLine operated flights on 17 routes. Subsidised flights are among the most popular: in the initial two months of this year, the passenger traffic on subsidised flights has more than doubled, and the seat occupancy rate has upped 20% year-on-year. Thanks to the active involvement of regional authorities, Sverdlovsk Region is the national leader by the number of subsidised flights.