The Innsbruck-Vienna flight connection was once a particularly profitable route in the network of Austrian Airlines and previously Tyrolean Airways. Several competitors who wanted to compete were successfully pushed out.

In the recent past, Air Alps, SkyEurope and Niki, among others, have tried the inner Austrian route. The short period of competition was definitely an advantage for passengers, as prices quickly plummeted. Austrian Airlines has always entered into a price war until the competition has lost interest. At that time, Niki Lauda justified the abandonment of the Innsbruck route with a lack of profitability and accused the AUA of price dumping. As soon as the last challenger left, prices rose noticeably again.

Flying between Innsbruck and Vienna is not exactly cheap. But there are also defenders of the high ticket prices, for example airport director Marco Pernetta once said that they did not want to compete with the train on price. Flying is a premium product and that has its price. Apart from connecting passengers, it is generally known that point-to-point traffic mainly involves politicians and business travelers.

Fewer business travelers on board

The times when companies didn't really care how much their employees' travel costs were or how often they traveled have been over since the start of the corona pandemic. Many companies have discovered that it is not necessary for salespeople and/or middle management to show up in person for every customer meeting. A lot of things can also be done by email, telephone or Zoom etc. and it's cheaper too. This inevitably leads to lower demand from business travelers.

According to Austrian Airlines board member Michael Trestl, the Innsbruck-Vienna route is currently not covering costs. The carrier would incur losses despite high ticket prices. The manager told the Tiroler Tageszeitung that they wanted to stick to Innsbruck, but that the route should at least cover costs. But at the moment this would not be the case.

Up to three daily rotations are currently offered on this route. Compared to the past, this has already thinned out significantly, because at their peak, only Austrian Airlines and its predecessor Tyrolean Airways had significantly more daily flights between the two cities. Now there is a possibility of further cuts because the midday flight is in serious danger. The Austrian aviation company does not yet want to officially confirm this, but Trestl admits to the Tiroler Tageszeitung that there has already been a round table on this matter in which representatives from tourism, politics and business took part.

Politics: AUA calls for financial support

“Innsbruck is very important to us. We see ourselves as part of the Tyrolean economy. This includes competitive prices. However, there is also a structural decline in business trips from Innsbruck to Vienna. A new way of working together is needed. Collaboration must not be to the detriment of one partner. To be clear: the Innsbruck – Vienna route must at least cover costs and that is not the case at the moment,” said Michael Trestl to the Tiroler Tageszeitung.

National Council member Rebecca Kirchbaumer (ÖVP) explained that at the aforementioned round table, Austrian Airlines was said to have requested financial subsidies for the operation of the Innsbruck-Vienna route. Accordingly, the alternative is supposed to be that the number of circulations is further reduced. A parliamentary question in the National Council has been announced. The politician hopes that this will provide further clarification.

However, in this context it may be overlooked that Austrian Airlines is a private aviation company. The days when a state-owned company had to fulfill politicians' wish lists are long gone. Any grants may not be awarded freely, but must be advertised. Any airline that is interested can then apply.

Frankfurt route will be discontinued

It was only recently announced that AUA sister Air Dolomiti would be in the 2024 summer flight schedule will no longer fly between Innsbruck and Frankfurt am Main. This means that the hub connection to the Lufthansa hub is lost. The airport management has hopes that Skyalps could take over, but this only makes sense if appropriate cooperation agreements are concluded with Lufthansa. Passengers would not benefit from a pure point-to-point connection without interline and/or codeshare contracts.

As a result, the waves are rising in Innsbruck, because a possible thinning of the connection to the AUA hub in Vienna would result in connectivity falling even further. The airport and politicians agree that they want to prevent Innsbruck from degenerating into a seasonal regional airport. As is well known, the volume of traffic in winter is already significantly higher than in summer. However, the Tyrolean airport has also taken a stand against low-cost airlines and refused to make attractively priced offers. You may have to rethink things very soon.