The protest of the expresses to the ministers ο Mayor of Kythira Efstratios Charhalakis following the latest developments regarding the air connection of the island. Read his letter below.
To:
1. Minister of Infrastructure and Transport κ. Konstantinos Karamanlis
2. Minister of Tourism Mr. Vasilis Kikilias
Re:
1. Deputy Minister of Shipping κ. Konstantinos Katsafados
2. Governor of Y.P.A. κ. George Dritsacos
3. Mr. Mr. MPs of Piraeus and Islands
4. M.M.E.
EXTREMELY URGENT, Kythera, 01-06-2022, No. Proto.:2423
Subject: Unthinkable practices of airlines.
Honourable Ministers,
After 2 years of pandemic, the summer season that has just begun, is extremely positive for our country, as according to all the data so far, Greek tourism seems to be recovering, bridging the gap created in the last 2 years.
Already last year, the airline Olympic Air started again direct flights from Thessaloniki to Kythera State Airport «Alexandros Aristotelous Onassis», on a regular basis for the summer season. These flights have been announced for this summer, for the period July - September, connecting our island directly with Northern Greece, which has been a source of visitors to Kythera for many years.
In this context, the Municipality of Kythera proceeded with the implementation of the tourism promotion programme for 2022, which was also adapted to the fact of the air connection between Thessaloniki and Kythera. This was also done by both the tourist agencies of Kythera and Thessaloniki, as well as the hoteliers and owners of rental rooms and cars on the island.
All of a sudden, however, and while there are already too many reservations in hotels and rooms in Kythera, Olympic Air, proceeds to cancel all its scheduled flights from Thessaloniki to Kythera, forcing passengers to change planes in Athens (with a large increase in cost), causing a problem of enormous proportions on our island and irreparable financial disaster to tourism professionals, who are looking forward this year to cover the large losses of 2020 and 2021. Without warning, without any information to our Municipality, as if it were a «state within a state», the airline in question «decides and orders», taking hundreds of families who live from tourism by the throat, reversing the holiday planning of those who had already chosen this route for their holidays and causing great economic damage to our country.
But, the behaviour of Sky Express is no better. Without consulting with any local stakeholders, it also transfers its only daily flight to Kythera at 9pm for the whole summer (!), creating a huge problem for tourism, visitors and professionals, knowing that the timetables are rarely followed exactly and that delays of at least one hour are common. In short, tourists will arrive on our island at 11 and 12 o'clock at night! In this regard, our letters No. 126/12-01-2022 and 1003/10-03-2022.
Honourable Ministers,
These airline behaviours are unacceptable and totally incomprehensible. Kythera, an island with a short tourist season and only 2 flights a day from Athens in the summer, is struggling to develop economically and should receive the necessary support, both from the regulatory Administration and from the private airlines that receive not very desirable amounts from their activities on our island, an island with huge growth prospects that we hope from 2023 to have better air service considering that - at last - the air route Thessaloniki - Kalamata - Kythera is subsidized for the period 2023-27 (in addition to the Athens - Kythera route) and the Thessaloniki - Kalamata - Kythera route on an annual basis, as we have always asked for, for which we thank you warmly.
It is obvious that the Municipality and the professionals will claim through the justice system compensation for any kind of financial loss we suffer from this unacceptable behavior of these companies. For example, the cancellation of the direct flights from Thessaloniki to Kythera, leads to the devaluation of a large tourist promotion programme of our Municipality for this year, which was adapted to this fact (radio and television promotion, advertisements, special actions for the public of Northern Greece, etc.).
As far as the Government is concerned, we ask for your immediate and catalytic intervention and please keep us informed of your actions.
Sincerely,
THE MAYOR
Eustratios Charhalakis
