Dobrolet (low-cost airline)
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Dobrolet LLC (russian: ООО «Добролёт» , translit = OOO Dobrolyot) was a Russian low-cost airline - a subsidiary of Aeroflot - based at
Sheremetyevo International Airport Sheremetyevo Alexander S. Pushkin International Airport ( rus, links=no, Международный аэропорт Шереметьево имени А. С. Пушкина, p=ʂɨrʲɪˈmʲetʲjɪvə ''Mezhdunarodny aeroport Sheremetyevo imen ...
. It operated scheduled flights to domestic destinations.


History


Background

The operation of low-cost airlines in Russia to date has not been met with success.
Sky Express CJSC Sky Express (russian: ЗАО «Небесный Экспресс»), simply known as Sky Express and in Russian as ''Скай Экспресс'', was a Russian low-cost airline. Its main base was Vnukovo International Airport, Moscow, Russi ...
was the first attempt at a Russian low-cost airline and began operations in 2007; it ceased operations in October 2011 after experiencing financial difficulties with all aircraft and flights being transferred to Kuban Airlines. Avianova, founded in 2009 and the fastest growing low-cost airline in Russia, ceased operations twenty days before SkyExpress due to unresolvable disputes between its shareholders; the Russian A1 Investments and the US-based
Indigo Partners Indigo Partners, LLC is an American private equity firm which has a controlling interest in the American Frontier Airlines and Chilean low-cost JetSmart, as well as holding stakes in Mexican budget airline Volaris and European low-cost carrier ...
. In October 2012, Aeroflot General-Director
Vitaly Savelyev Vitaly Gennadyevich Savelyev (russian: Виталий Геннадьевич Савельев; born January 18, 1954) is a Russian businessman and politician serving as the Ministry of Transport (Russia), Minister of Transport since 10 November 2 ...
held a meeting with Russian President
Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...
at
Novo-Ogaryovo Novo-Ogaryovo (russian: Ново-Огарёво), also transliterated as ''Novo-Ogarevo'', is an estate in the Odintsovsky District of Moscow Oblast, located by the Rublyovo-Uspenskoye Highway west of the city of Moscow. It operates as the s ...
residence at which the operations of the Russian
flag carrier A flag carrier is a transport company, such as an airline or shipping company, that, being locally registered in a given sovereign state, enjoys preferential rights or privileges accorded by the government for international operations. Hi ...
and the creation of conditions optimal for the operation of low-cost airlines in Russia were discussed. During the meeting Savelyev told Putin that Aeroflot was committed to staying a full-service premium airline, but given the right legislative conditions the flag carrier would be ready to launch a low-cost airline in a six- to twelve-month period. Experts had attributed part of the failure of SkyExpress and Avianova to unfavourable legislative conditions, and during the course of the meeting Savelyev noted the legislative changes which would need to implemented to create favourable conditions for the establishment of a true low-cost airline in Russia. Amongst them, Article 108 of the Russian Air Code would need to be amended in order to allow airlines to sell passengers non-refundable tickets and Article 56 of the Russian Air Code would need to be amended to allow the hiring of foreign pilots. Federal aviation rules would need amending to allow for airlines to charge passengers for baggage, who were then allowed to check in 10 kilograms for no charge, and rules would need to be amended to allow airlines not to serve meals on board, something which was then prohibited. Additionally, it was Savelyev's contention that low-cost airlines should operate from their own airport, in order to keep airport taxes to a minimum, and for import duties on aircraft with more than 170 seats to be scrapped. Such changes were expected to hit obstacles as numerous government ministries had expressed their opposition to such changesthe Ministry of Transport was opposed to relaxing conditions on the serving of inflight meals and free luggage allowances; the Ministry of Economic Development and the Ministry of Industry were opposed to abolishing import duties on aircraft as this would impact on the
Irkut MC-21 The Irkut MC-21 (russian: Иркут МС-21) is a single-aisle airliner, developed in Russia by the Yakovlev Design Bureau and produced by its parent Irkut, a branch of the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), itself a 92%-owned subsidiary o ...
program; and the Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Welfare and the Federal Antimonolopy Service were against the introduction of a non-refundable ticket regime in Russia. However, for his part, Putin agreed with Savelyev that numerous legislative changes should be looked at, but was hesitant to lend his support on the idea of the hiring of foreign pilots as he stated this would require further indepth discussions and negotiations with the relevant trade unions.


Formation

On 17 September 2013, Savelyev announced that the Aeroflot board had resolved at its August meeting that the company would begin planning of a stand-alone low-cost airlines – it would not be carved out of the mainline company – and that the board had committed itself to allocating funding for the project in 2013, and further in 2014 from the company's budget. Dobrolet, LLC was registered on 4 October 2013 with Aeroflot as the only shareholder. On 10 October 2013, Savelyev acknowledged the formation of the company and publicly announced that the name of the Aeroflot's new stand-alone low-cost airline would be Dobrolet; the same name as an early Soviet airline which itself preceded the formation of Aeroflot, and whose name translates loosely to ''good flight''. It was announced that it was expected for the airline to launch flights in 2014 with flights from Moscow to 8 Russian cities –
Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
,
Krasnodar Krasnodar (; rus, Краснода́р, p=krəsnɐˈdar; ady, Краснодар), formerly Yekaterinodar (until 1920), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Krasnodar Krai, Russia. The city stands on the Kuban River in southe ...
,
Yekaterinburg Yekaterinburg ( ; rus, Екатеринбург, p=jɪkətʲɪrʲɪnˈburk), alternatively romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( rus, Свердло́вск, , svʲɪrˈdlofsk, 1924–1991), is a city and the administra ...
, Samara,
Makhachkala Makhachkala ( rus, Махачкала, , məxətɕkɐˈla, links=yes),; av, Махӏачхъала, Maħaçqala; ce, ХӀинжа-ГӀала, Hinƶa-Ġala; az, Маһачгала, Mahaçqala; nog, Махачкала; lbe, Махачкъала; ...
,
Ufa Ufa ( ba, Өфө , Öfö; russian: Уфа́, r=Ufá, p=ʊˈfa) is the largest city and capital city, capital of Bashkortostan, Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Belaya River (Kama), Belaya and Ufa River, Ufa rivers, in the centre-n ...
,
Kaliningrad Kaliningrad ( ; rus, Калининград, p=kəlʲɪnʲɪnˈɡrat, links=y), until 1946 known as Königsberg (; rus, Кёнигсберг, Kyonigsberg, ˈkʲɵnʲɪɡzbɛrk; rus, Короле́вец, Korolevets), is the largest city and ...
and
Novy Urengoy Novy Urengoy (russian: Но́вый Уренго́й, lit: “New Urengoy”; Nenets: Едэй Уренгой, ''Edėy Urengoy'') is a city in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Russia. Population: It is the second largest city in the autonomous ...
, whilst expanding its network in the second year of operation to 19 destinations, and furthermore to 26 destinations in its third year. The airline also expected to begin foreign flights in 2016 to destinations such as
Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
,
Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Kyi ...
,
Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and i ...
and
Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...
. Following the annexation of the
Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...
by the Russian Federation, on 27 March 2014 Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev instructed
Russian Railways Russian Railways (russian: link=no, ОАО «Российские железные дороги» (ОАО «РЖД»), OAO Rossiyskie zheleznye dorogi (OAO RZhD)) is a Russian fully state-owned vertically integrated railway company, both manag ...
and Aeroflot to submit proposals to the Russian government on transport accessibility to the newly annexed territory, and in the case of Aeroflot the proposal should see "a larger number of flights in Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, particularly with the use of a low-budget air carrier." Tickets for the first route from Moscow to Simferopol went on sale on 26 May 2014 with one-way fares ranging between 999 and 3,499 rubles, and it was reported that within 24 hours some four thousand tickets were sold. All fares included one piece of carry-on luggage weighing up to 10 kilograms, with all other extras such as meals and pre-flight seat selection attracting additional charges.


Commencement of operations

Dobrolet operated its first commercial flight on the Moscow to Simferopol route on 10 June 2014. Prior to the flight, which was fully booked, the aircraft was inspected by Dmitry Medvedev, who also greeted Dobrolet customers who were booked on the flight. After inspecting the aircraft, Medvedev is reported as saying "The plane is cool, it's completely new. Its seats are narrow, but the flights aren't very long so I hope everything will be OK."


EU sanctions and shutdown

In the aftermath of the unsolved shootdown on 17 July 2014 of
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 (MH17/MAS17) was a scheduled passenger flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur that was shot down by Russian forces on 17 July 2014, while flying over eastern Ukraine. All 283 passengers and 15 crew were killed. Cont ...
in
eastern Ukraine Eastern Ukraine or east Ukraine ( uk, Східна Україна, Skhidna Ukrayina; russian: Восточная Украина, Vostochnaya Ukraina) is primarily the territory of Ukraine east of the Dnipro (or Dnieper) river, particularly Khar ...
, on 30 July 2014 the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...
placed additional sanctions on Russian individuals and entities, amongst them Dobrolet, LLC. The EU justified the sanctions on Dobrolet as it was state-owned and Dobrolet had operated only on the Moscow to Simferopol route, which in the view of the EU facilitates what it deemed to be the illegal integration of Crimea and Sevastopol into the Russian Federation and thereby it deems the act of flights to Crimea to be supporting the violation of Ukrainian sovereignty. In accordance with the EU sanctions, supply of materials and investments in Russia were prohibited while its citizens were banned from providing economic resources. European partners of Dobrolet began to cancel contracts they held with the airline, covering aircraft leasing, maintenance and insurance. Irish-based
SMBC Aviation Capital SMBC Aviation Capital, formerly RBS Aviation Capital, is one of the world's largest aircraft leasing companies. It is owned by a consortium of leading Japanese institutions: Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), Sumitomo Mitsui Finance a ...
cancelled leasing agreements for a 737-800, and
Lufthansa Technik Lufthansa Technik AG ('Lufthansa Engineering', often referred to simply as “LHT”) provides worldwide maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services for aircraft, engines, and components. It is a subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group. Headquarte ...
cancelled agreements to provide
maintenance Maintenance may refer to: Biological science * Maintenance of an organism * Maintenance respiration Non-technical maintenance * Alimony, also called ''maintenance'' in British English * Champerty and maintenance, two related legal doct ...
on the Dobrolet Boeing-fleet. The EU also stopped providing aeronautical information. Due to the sanctions and the resultant contract cancellations by its partners, on 3 August 2014 the management of Dobrolet announced that all flight operations would cease as of the next day. With this announcement, Dobrolet became the first company to cease operations due to EU sanctions, leading Moscow to threaten more tit-for-tat sanctions in response. At the time of the shutdown, the airline had managed to sell some 95,000 tickets. It was announced that ticket holders for Dobrolet flights from Moscow to Simferopol and Volgograd would have their flights provided by
Orenair Orenburg Airlines or JSC Orenair (russian: Оренбургские авиалинии) was a Russian airline with its head office on the property of Orenburg Tsentralny Airport in Orenburg. It operated domestic passenger services and inclusive ...
until 15 September and 20 August, respectively. Other customers with paid for flights past these dates, and including flights to destinations for which service had not yet begun, would receive a full refund. Nevertheless, on 6 August the company announced it has ordered sixteen new
Boeing 737-800 The Boeing 737 Next Generation, commonly abbreviated as 737NG, or 737 Next Gen, is a narrow-body aircraft powered by two jet engines and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Launched in 1993 as the third generation derivative of the Boein ...
airplanes to be produced in 2017–2018.


Post shutdown

On 16 September 2014, it was announced that Aeroflot had registered a new company, ООО «Бюджетный перевозчик» ( en, Budget Carrier, LLC), which was pointedly known as Pobeda, which means "Victory". Pobeda added some Dobrolet aircraft to its own fleet.


Destinations

The company served nine destinations (as of October 2014): ; *
Kazan Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...
Kazan International Airport Kazan International Airport ( tt-Cyrl, Казан Халыкара Аэропорты, translit=Qazan Xalıqara Aeroportı, russian: Международный аэропорт Казань; IATA: KZN, ICAO: UWKD) is an airport in Russia, aroun ...
*
Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...
Sheremetyevo International Airport Sheremetyevo Alexander S. Pushkin International Airport ( rus, links=no, Международный аэропорт Шереметьево имени А. С. Пушкина, p=ʂɨrʲɪˈmʲetʲjɪvə ''Mezhdunarodny aeroport Sheremetyevo imen ...
*
Perm Perm or PERM may refer to: Places *Perm, Russia, a city in Russia ** Permsky District, the district **Perm Krai, a federal subject of Russia since 2005 **Perm Oblast, a former federal subject of Russia 1938–2005 **Perm Governorate, an administra ...
Perm International Airport Perm International Airport (russian: Международный аэропорт Пермь) is an international airport located at Bolshoye Savino, southwest of the city of Perm, Russia. It is the only airport in Perm Krai with scheduled com ...
* Samara
Kurumoch International Airport Kurumoch International Airport (russian: Международный аэропорт "Курумоч") is the international airport of Samara, Russia, located 35 km (22 mi) north of the city. Besides Samara, the airport serves Tolyatt ...
* SurgutSurgut International Airport *
Ufa Ufa ( ba, Өфө , Öfö; russian: Уфа́, r=Ufá, p=ʊˈfa) is the largest city and capital city, capital of Bashkortostan, Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Belaya River (Kama), Belaya and Ufa River, Ufa rivers, in the centre-n ...
Ufa International Airport Ufa International Airport (russian: Международный аэропорт Уфа, ''Mezhdunarodnyy aeroport Ufa'', ba, Өфө халыҡ-ара аэропорты, ) is the primary airport serving Ufa, the capital of Bashkortostan, Russi ...
*
Volgograd Volgograd ( rus, Волгогра́д, a=ru-Volgograd.ogg, p=vəɫɡɐˈɡrat), formerly Tsaritsyn (russian: Цари́цын, Tsarítsyn, label=none; ) (1589–1925), and Stalingrad (russian: Сталингра́д, Stalingrád, label=none; ) ...
Volgograd International Airport Volgograd International Airport (russian: Международный Аэропорт Волгоград) is an airport located 15 km northwest of the city of Volgograd, formerly Stalingrad, in Russia. It comprises a civilian airport built ...
*
Yekaterinburg Yekaterinburg ( ; rus, Екатеринбург, p=jɪkətʲɪrʲɪnˈburk), alternatively romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( rus, Свердло́вск, , svʲɪrˈdlofsk, 1924–1991), is a city and the administra ...
Koltsovo Airport Koltsovo International Airport (russian: Аэропорт Кольцово) is the international airport serving Yekaterinburg, Russia, located 16 km (10 mi) southeast of the city. Being the largest airport in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Kolts ...
*
Simferopol Simferopol () is the second-largest city in the Crimean Peninsula. The city, along with the rest of Crimea, is internationally recognised as part of Ukraine, and is considered the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. However, it is ...
Simferopol International Airport Simferopol International Airport ( uk, Міжнародний аеропорт "Сімферополь", ''Mizhnarodnyy aeroport "Simferopol’"''; russian: link=, Международный аэропорт "Симферополь", ''Mezhdunar ...


Fleet

The Dobrolet Airlines fleet included the following aircraft (as of May 2014):Dobrolet Fleet


References

{{authority control Defunct airlines of Russia Companies based in Moscow Airlines established in 2013 Former Aeroflot divisions Airlines disestablished in 2014 2014 disestablishments in Russia Russian companies established in 2013