Negotiations with Ryanair Took Place During Serzh Sargsyan’s Era, Lapshin Says

The Russian-Israeli blogger Alexander Lapshin, who was sentenced in Azerbaijan for visiting Artsakh but was later granted freedom, has commented on the entry of Ryanair, the largest budget airline in Europe, into the Armenian market.

“The entire internet is discussing how wonderful the head of Armenia's Civil Aviation Committee, Tatevik Revazyan, is for managing to 'convince' Ryanair to come to Armenia. What nonsense! What does this girl have to do with it? Friends, the question is not Tatevik Revazyan's ability to negotiate with airlines. The question is that the state needs to eliminate all fees for airlines at the airport so that they agree to operate flights to Armenia,” he wrote on his Facebook page.

According to him, the fees for one passenger currently amount to $76, and this fee has been covered by the government following a directive from Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. “This is what Pashinyan told me personally in the summer of 2018—over a year ago. But today, few remember that back in Serzh Sargsyan’s era—in 2015—Ryanair clearly stated its conditions: take the fees on yourselves, and we will come to Armenia. If you don’t take them, we won’t come. It’s very clear,” he said.

Lapshin noted that negotiations with Ryanair and Wizzair were already taking place during Serzh Sargsyan’s time, “long before Tatevik,” but the former government refused to cover the $76 fee per passenger from the budget. This is why Ryanair did not come. Without budget funds, the former head of Civil Aviation could do nothing.

“When over $5 million was allocated annually from Armenia’s budget for these fees, Ryanair immediately agreed. Tatevik just went to Europe and informed them about Nikol Pashinyan’s decision. That’s why I believe that there is no contribution from Tatevik Revazyan in the arrival of this airline. This was purely Pashinyan’s decision, and it involves budget funds,” he stated.

It is noteworthy that Ryanair, the largest budget airline in Europe, is entering the Armenian aviation market. The announcement was made at a press conference on October 16 by Ryanair's commercial director David O'Brien, the director of Armenia International Airports, Marcello Vanden, and Tatevik Revazyan, the head of the Civil Aviation Committee. The airline will commence its first flight on January 14, connecting Yerevan to Rome and Milan, and from the end of March, it will operate flights to Berlin, while Gyumri will be connected to Germany's Memmingen city from the end of March.