Is airBaltic ‘The Most National’ Carrier?

In August of this year, airBaltic held a voting contest for the “Most Beloved Baltic Cities” to be featured on the carrier’s Airbus A220 aircraft. After receiving more than a million votes, the airline concluded the results.

The Baltic States

Due to the shared recent history, the North-East European countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania are now often referred to as The Baltic States. All three gained or regained independence in the outcome of World War I in 1918 but later got incorporated into the Soviet Union after World War II.

Now one of the most recognizable pieces of the joint history of the countries is The Baltic Way or the Baltic Chain, a peaceful political demonstration that occurred on Aug. 23, 1989. As many as two million people formed a human chain linking the capitals of the three Baltic countries: Vilnius, Riga, and Tallinn.

Martin Gauss, CEO and President of airBaltic, said: “We are delighted by the overwhelming enthusiasm and engagement this contest generated. The 35th anniversary of the Baltic Way is a momentous occasion celebrating unity across the Baltic States. By naming our aircraft after cities in Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania, we honor this event and strengthen the connection among nations. It is a privilege to have our fleet carry the names of these cities worldwide, showcasing our unity and pride.”

The contest concluded by naming 48 cities, 16 from each Baltic country, that will have their names adorn airBaltic’s Airbus A220-300 aircraft.

The results are as follows:

• Latvia: Aizpute, Alūksne, Daugavpils, Kuldīga, Liepāja, Limbaži, Lubāna, Ogre, Olaine, Rēzekne, Rīga, Saldus, Sigulda, Skrunda, Ventspils, and Viļaka
• Estonia: Elva, Jõhvi, Kuressaare, Kunda, Lihula, Narva, Paldiski, Pärnu, Põltsamaa, Püssi, Rapla, Tallinn, Tartu, Valga, Viljandi, and Võru
• Lithuania: Anykščiai, Alytus, Biržai, Druskininkai, Joniškėlis, Kėdainiai, Klaipėda, Molėtai, Rokiškis, Šilalė, Šilutė, Tauragė, Ukmergė, Vilnius, Visaginas, and Zarasai

The Most Beloved Baltic Cities contest winners (Photo: Filip Kopec)

The National Carrier of the Baltics

AirBaltic is a carrier owned in majority by the Latvian government but brands itself as the national carrier of the Baltic States. The airline reports its brand is recognized by 98%, 98%, and 92% of surveyed customers in Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania respectively.

The success is in both operations and marketing. As reported by the airline, in 2023 it held 56%, 26%, and 13% passenger market share at Riga Airport, Tallinn Airport, and Vilnius Airport respectively. This means airBaltic is the number one airline in Latvia and Estonia, while in Lithuania it faces significant pressure from low-cost competition, namely Ryanair.

On the marketing side, the airline is extremely successful in the social media domain. The carrier’s official TikTok account posts viral content with some videos reaching as many as 20 million views. The score is more impressive when considering that all three countries have a population of just over six million combined.

The company is also known for innovation. One of the decisions shaping its current standing was unifying the fleet around the Airbus A220-300 aircraft. The carrier took a risk, being the European launch customer for the type, but now with a single-type fleet, it is benefiting from the cost-savings. The airline has also declared the fleet will be equipped with Starlink internet connectivity as soon as 2025.

An airBaltic A220 painted with the Latvian flag to celebrate the nation’s centenary. (Photo: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson)

In honor of Latvia’s independence centenary, in 2018, the carrier had already held a similar city contest but the selection regarded only Latvian cities. Sixteen of the aircraft from the carrier’s existing fleet were already named using the Latvian city names and later on, the cities were featured in airBaltic’s first NFT (Non-Fungible Tokens) collection in 2021.

From all the brands trying to capitalize on the short-lived trend, airBaltic seems to have emerged as a long-term beneficiary with the collection still being traded among enthusiasts.

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Filip Kopeć

A passionate aviation enthusiast that started off his career as an aerospace engineer, but found his true calling on the commercial side of the airline business. Now as a finance guy among avgeeks and an avgeek among finance guys, he has experience working in the Revenue Divisions of three airlines. In his spare time he enjoys traveling, but admittedly sometimes is more about the journey than the destination.

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