Russian budget airline takes off

Sky Express will have just two planes to begin with

Russia's first budget airline, Sky Express, has taken to the skies.

The carrier, which is starting with just two planes, aims to gain a 7% share of domestic Russian flights by the end of 2007, and 25% by 2011.

Its first flights are going from Moscow to the Black Sea resort city of Sochi, with one-way tickets from $19 (£9).

The price of an equivalent ticket on Russian flag carrier Aeroflot is $120. Sky Express plans to quickly add to its list of destinations.

'High time'

"The market was starved of budget airlines, it was high time something like this was started up," said Richard Wallis, spokesman for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

This trans-government investment body has so far invested $10m towards Sky Express' $48m start-up costs.

The airline said passengers would be able to pay for tickets at 56,000 locations across Russia, including post offices and branches of state-owned bank Vneshtorgbank.

Existing Russian carrier S7 has warned that Sky Express faces a number of difficulties.

"There is one airport, one fuel company and one catering company: the conditions for a low-cost airline in the European sense don't simply don't exist in Russia," he said.