Security expert: airBaltic saga still has no end in sight

Retired general, security expert and chairman of the Security and Defence Industry Federation council Artis Velšs discussed the future of Latvia's national airline airBaltic on the TV24 programme “Preses klubs”. He said the airline's long-running funding situation has effectively become one of Latvia's endless ongoing sagas.

Velšs stressed he was speaking not as a financial expert but as a member of the public and a service user. He acknowledged airBaltic's importance as a national brand and expressed hope the matter would end with an outcome favorable to Latvia. In his view, the quality of service the airline has provided has generally been adequate from customers' perspective.

The cost to taxpayers

According to Velšs, the real issue is not service quality but the cost of maintaining it and how much state money continues to be funneled into the company. He noted that people who don't use airBaltic's services may see the issue as less relevant to them, but public money invested in the airline affects every resident, since those funds cannot simultaneously go toward other priorities such as economic development or social programs.

He said the public has a right to expect a clear answer on how long, and to what extent, the state intends to keep financing the airline. Velšs admitted that the worst-case scenario for the company would be undesirable but cannot be entirely ruled out. In his opinion, what matters most now is making a firm decision and explaining it clearly to the public.

He recalled that resolving airBaltic's future had previously been named one of the government's tasks, and that the prime minister had earlier stressed the need for clarity, even though the government's short-term options in this matter remain limited.