Notice, pursuant to Article 4(1)(a) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2408/92 on access for Community air carriers to intra-Community air routes, concerning the operation of scheduled air services on certain domestic routes

(2003/C 17/03)

(Text with EEA relevance)

Pursuant to Article 4(1)(a) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2408/92 of 23 July 1992 on access for Community air carriers to intra-Community air routes, Sweden has decided to impose a public service obligation in respect of scheduled air services operated from 26 October 2003 on the following routes (and vice versa):

Kiruna-Luleå,

Kiruna-Umeå,

Gällivare-Luleå,

Gällivare-Umeå,

Luleå-Umeå.

All the routes specified concern services to and from municipalities which are peripheral or development regions in accordance with Council Regulation (EEC) No 2408/92.

The public service obligation encompasses a number of criteria which airlines must meet in respect of number of round trips, passenger capacity, timetables, maximum ticket prices, etc. These criteria are as follows:

Minimum frequency

Table 1 shows the minimum number of round trips per day during the respective periods for each of the routes indicated above. The timetables on these routes must include one round trip in the morning or afternoon/evening so as to make it possible to stay for the day at all destinations.

>TABLE>

Type and size of aircraft

There must be at least 30 seats per outward and return journey.

The cabin factor is limited for each leg of the journey and for the whole route. On average, the cabin factor for a leg of the journey may not exceed 80 %. The same restriction applies to the whole route.

The true air speed (TAS) must be at least 200 knots.

The aircraft must have a pressurised cabin.

The luggage/load capacity per passenger in an aircraft with a full passenger complement in normal weather conditions must be at least 20 kg.

Ticket prices

There must be tickets at reduced price available on every flight for non-business travellers as well as for children, young people, students, pensioners and accompanying family members.

Prices and timetables must be distributed through established global distribution systems (GDS).

Cooperation agreements

Interline agreements in accordance with existing marketing practice must be applied.

Regularity

At least 80 % of the departures must be less than five minutes late and 95 % must be less than 15 minutes late.

The flight regularity must be 99 %, calculated per calendar quarter.

Information, reservation and sales

There must be ample opportunity to obtain comprehensible information on the whole flight before beginning the journey. Reliable information is particularly important for people with functional disabilities. The airline is responsible for disseminating up-to-date, correct timetable and ticketing information through distribution and reservation systems. Ticket reservation and purchase must be easy for customers to perform and in accordance with current marketing practice.

Accessibility

The airline must ensure that provision is made for the needs of people with functional disabilities so that:

- embarkation and disembarkation can take place in comfort, safety and dignity,

- escorting and other assistance for changing plane/airline are provided during the journey,

- information is provided on travel routes and travel possibilities before the flight is undertaken,

- information is provided during the journey (in a form accessible to people with visual and hearing disabilities),

- ticket reservation and purchase must be easy for customers to perform.

Environmental requirements

The objective is to offer services with the least possible environmental impact in order to progress towards a sustainable society. The following general requirements apply:

- Operation and maintenance must be such as to minimise noise and harmful emissions from installations, vehicles and aircraft.

- All installed equipment which has an environmental impact must be in good working order and be used in accordance with the current instructions.

- The aircraft's noise levels must comply with ICAO Annex 16, Chapter 3.

Monitoring of service obligation

Airlines operating on the route must report to the National Public Transport Agency (Rikstrafiken) every calendar quarter on their compliance with the service obligation.