airBaltic

airBaltic, legally AS Air Baltic Corporation, is the national airline of Latvia. It is not a classic low-cost carrier: it sells a ladder of fares from a bag-free Economy MINI up to Business, with checked bags and other extras included only in the higher fares. Its head office is at Riga International Airport, which is also its main hub, and Wikipedia lists further bases in Tallinn, Vilnius and Tampere, plus a seasonal base at Gran Canaria opened in 2023. As of March 2026 the Latvian state owned 88.37% of the shares and the Lufthansa Group 10%.

The headline news in autumn 2026 is a restructuring. On 14 September 2026 airBaltic and some of its subsidiaries filed for voluntary Chapter 11 protection in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, with a debtor-in-possession financing commitment arranged by Strategic Value Partners. The airline said at the time that flights would run as scheduled and that existing tickets remained valid.

From Saab turboprops to an all-A220 fleet

Air Baltic was established on 28 August 1995 as a joint venture between Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) and the Latvian government, and flew its first passenger service on 1 October 1995 with a Saab 340. Avro RJ70s, Fokker 50s and Boeing 737s followed, a Vilnius operation opened on 1 June 2004, and the brand became airBaltic in October 2004. SAS sold its 47.2% stake in January 2009. After heavy losses in 2011 the state and the other shareholder recapitalised the airline, and the state's share reached 99.8% in November 2011.

The modern fleet began on 29 November 2016, when airBaltic took delivery of its first Bombardier CS300, the type later renamed the Airbus A220-300. The airline then retired its Boeing 737s, Dash 8 turboprops and other types and became an all-A220 operator. In January 2025 Lufthansa Group agreed to take a 10% stake, and Erno Hildén, who previously worked at Finnair and SAS, became chief executive on 1 December 2025.

Network and wet leasing

airBaltic flies short-haul only, from Riga, Tallinn and Vilnius to European cities and leisure destinations and to parts of the Middle East and North Africa. Long-haul trips are sold through codeshares, and Wikipedia lists more than 20 codeshare partners. A large part of its business is flying aircraft with crew for other airlines (wet leasing, or ACMI), mainly for Lufthansa Group carriers: ch-aviation reported in August 2026 a 21-aircraft ACMI deal with the group running until 2028. In 2025 the carrier flew 5.2 million passengers, according to the figures Wikipedia compiles from airBaltic publications.

Fleet

ch-aviation put the fleet at 54 Airbus A220-300s on 13 August 2026. The airline's previous plans aimed at around 100 aircraft. In August 2026 airBaltic replaced them with a revised business plan that cuts the fleet to about 36 A220-300s by the end of 2026 and then grows it slowly to about 40 by 2031. Scheduled capacity is expected to fall in 2027 before recovering, with the network concentrated on Riga. Delays in Pratt & Whitney engine maintenance led airBaltic to cancel 4,670 flights in 2025. In May 2026 it said no aircraft were grounded for engine reasons in the first quarter of 2026.

2025–26

• January 2025: Lufthansa Group investment agreement signed with the Latvian Ministry of Transport.
• 1 December 2025: Erno Hildén took over as chief executive.
• August 2026: revised business plan, smaller fleet, end of the earlier IPO-based plan.
• 14 September 2026: Chapter 11 filing in New York; the airline said flights would continue.