LOT flies higher, farther, faster: SAir makes investment

LOT Polish Airlines is to pump zl. 1 billion into a major expansion of its network of connecting flights. With a new schedule taking effect in November, LOT will triple its number of flights to 2,300 a week, enlarging its fleet by adding 11 planes. The company will then operate a fleet of 46 planes, including five Boeing 767s, 18 Boeing 737s, 13 ATR planes and 13 Brazilian Embraers. To facilitate the expansion, LOT has added 200 new employees to its staff of 4,000. LOT has recently joined Qualiflyer, an SAir controlled alliance associating such operators as Swissair, Sabena, TAP and THU, and is now providing simpler duty clearance on connecting flights in Warsaw, as well as a greater variety of flights and connections. Warsaw's Okecie international airport will be the main recipient of improvements, which will soon receive more flights picking up Qualiflyer passengers. The decision to expand LOT occurred mainly thanks to its strategic investor SAir Group, which owns 38% of the company and supplied $150 million for the project. Soaring fuel prices, high interest rates and the plunging euro caused a loss of zl40 million in the first eight months of the year, but LOT is pledging to end the year with profit from the sale of its stakes in other companies. (Gazeta Wyborcza, page 27) J.K.