Direct flights between Russia and Scotland

TRAVELLERS will be able to fly direct from Scotland to Russia for the first time - one year on from the historic state visit to the Edinburgh last June by Vladimir Putin, the country’s president.

The Russian airline Transaero will launch the new four-hour service in June, flying every Wednesday between Edinburgh and Moscow’s new Domodedovo international airport.

The connection is also expected to boost the 17,000 Russian tourists who visited Edinburgh in 2002 as well as encourage Scots to visit Moscow.

Tourism chiefs also hope the service will help attract more of the Russian capital’s growing number of wealthy residents to Edinburgh now they no longer need to go through London.

Jack Munro, the chief executive of Edinburgh and Lothians Tourist Board, said: "The introduction of a Moscow route to Edinburgh represents a significant opportunity for Scottish tourism. The Russian market to Britain is growing and is now worth 120 million to the economy and, with it, we’ve seen the emergence of Russian visitors with a propensity to travel widely and spend freely.

"Some of our leading hotels are already active in the Russian market and the introduction of the Transaero route provides us with a platform to develop further the impact of the Russian market in the local economy."

The airline has yet to decide on the fares for the route, with details expected to be revealed in a few weeks. British Airways flights from Heathrow to Moscow start at 207 return.

Staff will begin taking bookings around Easter. BAA Scotland supported the new route through its 60 million route-development fund.

Richard Jeffrey, Edinburgh airport’s managing director, said: "This exciting new route will strengthen links between the two cities, boosting tourism and business opportunities. We look forward to supporting the airline’s efforts in the coming months and years."

Valery Musaev, Transaero’s deputy director general of international relations, said: "We are delighted to be offering Scotland’s first regular and direct link with Russia which will provide an essential link between these dynamic capital cities.

"We are confident that this service will be a very welcome addition for business people and also for leisure travellers wishing to enjoy Russia’s capital city. I am sure it will attract many Russians to Edinburgh. It is already a popular destination but this will make it a lot easier for them to come.

"We are trying to promote Moscow as a city break. The weekly flight doesn’t really reflect that at the moment but if it proves popular, we’ll look to increase the frequency."