Is Kraków's Balice Airport to become the gateway for cheap airlines?

By mid December, the Kraków Balice airport runway will be expanded at the cost of about zł. 30 million, which will allow it to service two times more traffic than at present - or eight aircraft at once. Moreover, in 2004 it will expand its passenger terminal allowing it to increase its total capacity from 1.3 million to 2 million people a year. The traffic at the airport is expected to substantially increase in 2003, as 20 new connections should be launched, including ones to Milan and Copenhagen. However, deputy president of the Balice airport Ryszard Zębala declared that whether new connections will be launched depends on the airlines involved. In the first half of 2003, the airport serviced almost 260,000 passengers, a 15.5% increase over the same period last year. Moreover, officials in Kraków plan to build an economy second modular terminal solely for the use of cheaper airlines, such as Ireland's Ryanair. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B3) M.M.