The first Greek seaplane test flights in a 10-seat Quest Kodiak aircraft were successfully completed on the Ionian island of Corfu last weekend, following seven years of effort to establish seaplane flight connections in Greece. The seaplane repeatedly took off and landed from the port of Corfu and designated destinations in nearby Paxi and other Ionian islands.
The test flights were executed by Water Airports SA, the seaplane base management organisation, in collaboration with K2 Smart Jets and the Japanese groups Setouchi Holdings and Mitsui & Co.
“It is a struggle that began roughly seven years ago and today we have the first test flight in Greece and specifically in Corfu. Our goal is to begin operating flights immediately when the next tourist season starts but that depends on whether state mechanisms, which are particularly slow, will work at corresponding speeds so that we can achieve our goal,” stressed the owner of K2 Smart Jets Andreas Karotsieris on Sunday.
Water Airports SA has so far attained to obtain licences for the three first seaplane bases in Greece, to be set up in Corfu, Paxi and Patras. It has also initiated processes for the licencing of another 34 seaplane bases in various island and coastal areas in the Ionian Sea, Crete, Cyclades, Dodecanese, Saronic Gulf, the Peloponnese and Attica.
The company’s immediate plans are to launch regular flights from Corfu during spring, initially using one 10-seat and one 19-seat seaplane.
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RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons Copyright: Kecko License: CC-BY-SA
Source: ANA-MPA
