Arktikugol, a charter airline company, has received an exemption from the sanctions to offer service from Russia to Spitsbergen (Svalbard). Beginning September 15, the company will be able to resume tourist flights to the archipelago.

According to Arktikugol General Director Ildar Neverov, the season is coming to an end in the Arctic: the polar nights will begin in late October. So, there is currently no need in charter flights because “everyone who needed to be there flew regularly scheduled flights.”

Plans call for launching the first charter flight with Russian tourists to Spitsbergen at the beginning of the season, in April 2024. Flights will depart from Moscow or Murmansk; roundtrip tickets will cost less than 100,000, which is relatively inexpensive.

“It is less than 100,000 rubles for a roundtrip aboard a 130-seat aircraft, which is very cheap. It is much more expensive to fly via Norway: it would be 130,000 rubles and more. In addition, the Norwegian route has three transfers, and you need a visa. The charter flight takes only four hours, and no visa is required,” Neverov said.

The flight will depart from Moscow or Murmansk twice a month.

Ildar Neverov added that receiving flight permits is “a landmark event for the company and a breakthrough because with the sanctions exemption, we can apply to the Federal Agency for Air Transport for a flight permit.”