Russian Azur Air carrier to launch charter flights to Turkey on September 3

Russia’s Azur Air operator of charter flights plans to launch flights to Turkey’s Antalya on September 3, the carrier’s director for public relations, Anastasia Matyushina, has told Tass. She said the application for charter flights to Altalya was sent to Rosaviatsia (the Federal Air Transport Agency), and the reply is expected on Tuesday morning. "We are planning that the first flight to Antalya from Rostov (southern Russia) will take off on September 3, a second one, from Yekaterinburg (Urals), on the following day," Matyushina said, noting that flights from Kaliningrad (northwestern Russia) and Moscow would be launched on September 6, while flights from St. Petersburg - on September 7. She said the company would operate one flight a week from each of these cities, and the number of flights from Moscow could be increased to two-three times a week on demand. Matyushina said the flights had been ordered by ANEX Tour operator. In earlier reports Tass said that on Sunday Azur Air began talks with tour operators on the tourist product, as the plane can be booked only after this procedure. Russia's Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on Sunday signed an order to lift the ban for chartered flights between Russia and Turkey. Russia has received tighter airport security guarantees from Turkey, Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said in an interview with Rossiya 1 TV Channel on Monday.