Communication from the EFTA Surveillance Authority under Article 4(1)(a) of the Act referred to in point 64a in Annex XIII of the EEA Agreement (Council Regulation (EEC) No 2408/92 of 23 July 1992 on access for Community air carriers to intra-Community air routes)

Imposition on new public service obligations in respect of scheduled air services on the routes Lakselv-Tromsø v.v., Andenes-Bodø v.v. and Andenes-Tromsø v.v.

(2003/C 87/12)

LAKSELV-TROMSØ V.V.

1. INTRODUCTION

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 (http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en), Norway has decided to impose public service obligations as of 1 January 2004 in respect of scheduled air services on the following route:

Lakselv-Tromsø v.v.

2. THE PUBLIC SERVICE OBLIGATIONS INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

2.1. Minimum frequencies, seating capacity, routing and timetables

- The requirements apply throughout the year.

- A daily service obligation applies in both directions.

Frequencies

Minimum three daily return services Monday to Friday and minimum three return services Saturday and Sunday combined.

Seating capacity

In both directions at least 760 seats shall be offered Monday to Friday combined and at least 152 seats Saturday and Sunday combined.

Routing

In both directions at least two of the required daily services Monday to Friday and at least two of the required services Saturday and Sunday combined shall be non-stop. The remainder shall be through services with a maximum of one intermediate stop.

Timetables

- Account shall be taken of the public demand for air travel.

- The required services must be scheduled to connect with air services Tromsø to Oslo v.v.

- In addition, the following apply to the required flights on Monday to Friday (local times):

- first arrival in Tromsø shall be no later than 08.30 and last departure from Tromsø no earlier than 19.30;

- first departure from Tromsø shall be no later than 11.30 and last departure from Lakselv no earlier than 17.00.

2.2. Aircraft category

Aircraft registered for minimum 30 passengers and with pressurised cabin shall be used for the required flights.

Carriers' attention is especially drawn to technical and operative conditions applying at the airports. For further information, please contact: Luftfartstilsynet (Civil Aviation Authority), PO Box 8050 Dep, N - 0031 Oslo, telephone (47) 23 31 78 00

2.3. Fares

- The carriers maximum basic one-way fare (fully flexible) in the operating year beginning 1 January 2004 must not exceed NOK 1150.

- For each subsequent operating year the maximum fare shall be adjusted on 1 April within the limit of the consumer price index for the 12-month period ending 15 February the same year, as made public by Statistics Norway (http://www.ssb.no/english/ subjects/08/02/10/kpi_en/).

- The carrier shall be party to the domestic interline agreements in force at any time, and shall offer all discounts available under such agreements.

- Social discounts conforming to the usual practice shall be offered.

2.4. Service continuity

The number of flights cancelled for reasons directly attributable to the carrier must not exceed 1,5 % of the intended number of flights on an annual basis.

2.5. Cooperation arrangements

Following a tender procedure, which limits access to the route Lakselv-Tromsø v.v. to one carrier, these conditions apply:

Fares

- All connecting fares to/from other air services shall be offered on equal terms for all carriers. Exempted from this are connecting fares to/from other services carried out by the tenderer, provided that the fare is maximum 40 % of the fully flexible fare.

- Bonus points from frequent-flyer programmes can neither be earned nor redeemed on the flights.

Transfer conditions

All conditions set out by the carrier for the transfer of passengers to and from other carriers' routes, including connecting times and through check-in of tickets and baggage, shall be objective and non-discriminatory.

3. OTHER

These public service obligations replace those published in the Official Journal of the European Communities (C 112, of 9 May 2002) in respect of scheduled air services on the route Lakselv-Tromsø v.v.

4. FURTHER INFORMATION CAN BE OBTAINED FROM:

Ministry of Transport and Communications PO Box 8010 Dep N - 0030 Oslo Telephone (47) 22 24 82 41; fax (47) 22 24 95 72.

This documentation is also available on the Internet:

http://www.odin.dep.no/sd/ engelsk/aktuelt

ANDENES-BODØ V.V., ANDENES-TROMSØ V.V.

1. INTRODUCTION

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 (http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/), Norway has decided to impose public service obligations as of 1 January 2004 in respect of scheduled air services on the following routes:

Andenes-Bodø v.v., Andenes-Tromsø v.v.

2. THE PUBLIC SERVICE OBLIGATIONS INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

2.1. Minimum frequencies, seating capacity, routing and timetables

The requirements apply throughout the year. A daily service obligation applies in both directions.

Frequencies

Andenes-Bodø v.v., Andenes-Tromsø v.v. combined:

- Minimum four daily return services Monday to Friday and minimum five return services Saturday and Sunday combined.

- The public demand for air travel shall be taken into account in the distribution of the number of daily return services between Andenes-Bodø v.v. and Andenes-Tromsø v.v.

Andenes-Bodø v.v.

Minimum two daily return services Monday to Friday and minimum two return services Saturday and Sunday combined.

Andenes-Tromsø v.v.

Minimum one daily return service.

Seating capacity

For Andenes-Bodø v.v. and Andenes-Tromsø v.v. combined, there shall in both directions be at least 615 seats offered Monday to Friday combined and at least 160 seats Saturday and Sunday combined.

Routing

In both directions at least three of the four required daily services Monday to Friday and at least four of the five required services Saturday and Sunday combined shall be non-stop. The remainder shall be through services with a maximum of one intermediate stop.

Timetables

Account shall be taken of the public demand for air travel.

Andenes-Bodø v.v., Andenes-Tromsø v.v. combined

At least three services Monday to Friday and at least four services Saturday and Sunday combined must be scheduled to connect with air services to/from Oslo.

Andenes-Bodø v.v.

In addition, the following apply to the required flights on Monday to Friday (local times):

First arrival in Bodø shall be no later than 07.30 and last departure from Bodø no earlier than 20.00.

Andenes-Tromsø v.v.

In addition, the following apply to the required flights on Monday to Friday (local times):

First arrival in Tromsø shall be no later than 10.00 and last departure from Tromsø no earlier than 16.30.

2.2. Aircraft category

Aircraft registered for minimum 30 passengers and with pressurised cabin shall be used for the required flights.

Carriers' attention is especially drawn to technical and operative conditions applying at the airports. For further information, please contact: Luftfartstilsynet (Civil Aviation Authority), PO Box 8050 Dep, N - 0031 Oslo, telephone (47) 23 31 78 00.

2.3. Fares

- The carriers maximum basic one-way fares (fully flexible) in the operating year beginning 1 January 2004 must not exceed these amounts in Norwegian kroner:

Andenes-Bodø 1395

Andenes-Tromsø 680.

- For each subsequent operating year the maximum fares shall be adjusted on 1 April within the limit of the consumer price index for the 12-month period ending 15 February the same year, as made public by Statistics Norway (http://www.ssb.no/english/ subjects/08/02/10/kpi_en/).

- The carrier shall be party to the domestic interline agreements in force at any time, and shall offer all discounts available under such agreements.

- Social discounts conforming to the usual practice shall be offered.

2.4. Service continuity

The number of flights cancelled for reasons directly attributable to the carrier must not exceed 1,5 % of the intended number of flights on an annual basis.

2.5. Cooperation arrangements

Following a tender procedure, which limits access to the routes encompassed by the public service obligations to one carrier, these conditions apply:

Fares

- All connecting fares to/from other air services shall be offered on equal terms for all carriers. Exempted from this are connecting fares to/from other services carried out by the tenderer, provided that the fare is maximum 40 % of the fully flexible fare.

- Bonus points from frequent-flyer programmes can neither be earned nor redeemed on the flights.

Transfer Conditions

All conditions set out by the carrier for the transfer of passengers to and from other carriers' routes, including connecting times and through check-in of tickets and baggage, shall be objective and non-discriminatory.

3. OTHER

These public service obligations replace those published in the Official Journal of the European Communities (C 112, of 9 May 2002) as far as scheduled air services on the routes Andenes-Bodø v.v. and Andenes-Tromsø v.v. are concerned.

4. FURTHER INFORMATION CAN BE OBTAINED FROM:

Ministry of Transport and Communications PO Box 8010 Dep N - 0030 Oslo Telephone (47) 22 24 82 41, fax (47) 22 24 95 72.

This documentation is also available on the Internet:

http://www.odin.dep.no/sd/ engelsk/aktuelt.