Centralwings stays its course, defying critics

Some analysts see this as the source of the firm's problems. "The involvement in budget flights caused a significant decrease of activity in the charter-flight sector, which has prospects of development. One mustn't lose the brand, market presence or the consumers' trust. Therefore, the company should be divided into a charter-flight company and a budget airline," stated Tomasz Dziedzic, an air industry expert at the Institute of Tourism. However, Centralwings' president, Maciej Kwiatkowski, claims that such a division would be unfavorable both for LOT and Centralwings. He stated that there was no conflict between the regular flights and charter flights. "Regular flights and charter flights complement each other. It is clear when we look at the financial results at the top of the summer season," declared Kwiatkowski. He added that charter flights are characterized by a significant seasonality, which is particularly strong in the case of B737 aircraft. (Puls Biznesu, p.8) E.B.