May 21, 2021 SkyUp Airlines celebrates three years since the operation of the first flight. During this period, we have grown from one charter destination to 60 routes on three continents both international and domestic ones.
“We strive and work every day to make travel a part of everyone's life. We will continue to make the desired product available and inspire people to watch the world and learn something new, so that instead of spending money and time on a new sofa or TV, they get a vivid impression and enrich the mindset”, says Yuri Alba, co-owner of SkyUp Airlines and Join UP!.
Opening new destinations
The number of SkyUp destinations is increasing, while many countries remain closed. During this year* we started regular flights to Istanbul and Dubai, as well as created new opportunities for travel, offering Ukrainians such little known destinations as Almaty and Yerevan, Belgrade and Tirana. In addition, we have added charter flights to the island of Zanzibar, as well as a series of flights to Uzbekistan and Finland.
SkyUp has also expanded its flight program from the regions. Now from Zaporizhzhia, Lviv, Odesa and Kharkiv passengers can fly to the popular resorts of Georgia (Batumi and Tbilisi), as well as to Turkey, Cyprus, Albania and other countries.
As the borders open, we will launch new routes, allowing passengers to choose from as many destinations as possible.
“This year has not been easy for aviation. Closed borders have a significant impact on the industry. But even in such conditions, SkyUp was able to adapt, found new strategies to
develop, such as cargo flights, created convenient services for passengers, offered new travel formats”, says Dmytro Seroukhov, CEO at SkyUp Airlines. “We have kept and increased the team. It now consists of more than 900 employees, although a year earlier there were 800. At the same time, we launched a training program for cadets, and in April 2021, 6 pilots successfully trained on our own aircrafts. We implement all SkyUp projects and initiatives with the idea of
qualitatively developing the Ukrainian aviation industry, creating jobs for specialists and opening the world to Ukrainians and Ukraine to the world.”
Ukrainians continue to travel
The desire to travel is stronger even than the coronavirus and closed borders. During its third year* SkyUp carried 1,253,317 passengers on 7,846 flights via its 11 aircraft. In total, in three years, we performed 20,989 flights and carried 3,844,538 passengers.
During this year*, we got to know our passengers better and found out that women travel with SkyUp more often: 629,673 women and 467,473 men took advantage of our flights. In addition, 140,904 children and 15,267 infants (aged under 2) flew with us.
The most active among travelers are people aged 31 to 40 years (33%), passengers aged 21 to 30 years (25%) running second, and people aged from 41 to 50 years (20%) are third best.
During the past year*, Ukrainians flew most often on regular flights to Istanbul, Dubai and Tbilisi. As for charter flights, passengers preferred to travel to Sharm el Sheikh, Antalya and Hurghada.
Different tastes different dishes
In order for all flights to be pleasant, SkyUp constantly updates the onboard menu. So, this year* we have expanded the range of delicious rolls for every taste, and added Mr. POP's ice cream. And our passengers appreciated it: 39 kilograms of ice cream were ordered on SkyUp flights, and “mango” turned to be the most popular flavor. Chicken Sky Box became the most commonly offered dish.
More features with SkyUp
SkyUp is constantly improving the quality of services and creating new opportunities for passengers. So, in 2020, we launched two new vacation formats: CityBreak and Weekend for U. Passengers who choose CityBreak, along with air tickets book a hotel, so they do not need to spend time on a long choice or reading reviews: just a few clicks and one can fly on vacation to another city. Weekend for U is a comprehensive program of recreation, including tickets, hotel, tours, accompanied by a guide and photographer. Ukrainians have already had the opportunity to check this format in Odesa, Istanbul and Almaty, and soon there will be even more destinations.
Currently SkyUp offers 6 destinations for CityBreaks from Kyiv, 5 from Odesa, and also 4 from Zaporizhzhia, 4 from Lviv, and 4 from Kharkiv. The most popular now are short trips to Lviv, Odesa and Istanbul.
To reduce queues at airports, we introduced an online check in from July 1, 2020. From the moment the service was launched until May 16, 2021, 323,692 passengers used it. In addition, over the past year, we have increased the weight of hand luggage allowed for carriage, as well as introduced a passenger balance function, which allows you to conveniently manage your funds to purchase tickets or additional services.
As you know, SkyUp works not only for people but also for pets. We have always been a pet friendly airline, but this year we also launched a joint project with the Happy Paw charity foundation. Now everyone who adopts animals from Happy Paw partner shelters will receive a certificate for their free and indefinite transportation.
Freight transportation
In spring of 2020, during strict lockdown, SkyUp was among the first in the world to reorient its fleet to freight transportations. Later, we continued to develop this service and from late May, 2020 to May 17, 2021 transported 765.4 tons of cargo.
From October 2020, SkyUp also started freight transportation of animals in accordance with the international IATA LAR (Live Animals Regulation) rules, which take into account the species of animals, their age, criteria and conditions of placement in the aircraft, temperature and other factors. The airline s specialists, who have passed the necessary training and received the relevant certificates, monitor the fulfillment of all requirements.
Celebrating together with our passengers
You can use the offer, from 21 to 23 May 2021, you need to enter a personal account at skyup.aero website, or register, if you haven t yet. After that, in the personal account, you should click the “Get a promo code” button and a special code will be sent to the e mail address that was specified during registration.
A 12% discount applies to the purchase of tickets with departure in the period from May 21 to October 31, 2021, except for the periods from 18 to 29 June 2021, as well as from 20 to 25 August 2021. All destinations participate in the promotion, except flights to Uzbekistan and Finland.
The borders are gradually opening up, which means that there are even more opportunities for travel ahead. We move forward with our passengers and partners. As it is you who help us to develop, discover new directions, change technologically and make travel more enjoyable.
* The year means the period from May 21, 2020 to May 20, 2021. All data is based on the airline's internal statistics for the specified period.