Austrian Airlines will increasingly rely on rail service between Linz and Vienna

• AIRail: Positively received by passengers
• 17 flights per week from Linz still operated by Austrian Airlines: up to 2x daily on the Linz-Düsseldorf route and 6x per week between Linz and Vienna as of April 1, 2015
• 8 direct connections each day with AIRail from Vienna Airport to Linz Central Railway Station
• 4 daily Linz-Frankfurt flights with Lufthansa

AIRail, the cooperation between Austrian Airlines and the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) which launched rail service between Linz Central Railway Station and Vienna Airport as of December 14, 2014, has been very well received by passengers. Many Upper-Austrians take advantage of this offering and combine air and rail travel. Therefore, Austrian Airlines will increasingly transfer ultra-short-haul flights between the Upper Austrian federal capital and Vienna to the rail service. Thus, the domestic carrier follows a trend that can be observed in ultra-short-haul flights in Europe. The contract with Welcome Air, which has been serving the Linz-Vienna route on behalf of Austrian Airlines since 2012 within the context of a so-called wet lease agreement, was therefore not extended. The four daily flights currently operated by Welcome Air will be terminated as of March 31, 2015. Austrian Airlines will continue to offer its morning flight service from Linz to Vienna using a Dash 8-Q400 and the evening flight from Vienna back to Linz. Starting on April 1, 2015, there will only be six flights from Linz to Vienna each week instead of the previous five flights per day. Flight service offered by Austrian Airlines up to twice per day from Linz to Düsseldorf will remain unchanged.Most recently Austrian Airlines incurred a loss of a significant one-digit million EUR amount per year on the Vienna-Linz route. Despite several attempts in past years to keep up service on this route, flights could not be operated profitably. Also the attempt to maintain such a high frequency of flights to Linz by concluding a wet lease agreement with Welcome Air featuring more flights with smaller aircraft did not lead to the desired success during the last three years. Last but not least, the unexpected introduction of the air transport levy in the year 2011 comprised an enormous additional burden which enhanced the attractiveness of the railway system as an alternative means of transportation. The number of passengers flying from Linz has declined by about one-fifth since the ticket tax was first imposed.

Travel concept of the future with up to 195 weekly connections from and to Linz
On the basis of the new intermodal approach consisting of a combination of air and rail travel, Austrian Airlines and Lufthansa offer passengers in Upper Austria a selection of different traffic connections. On balance, the summer flight schedule 2015 offers passengers a total of 195 weekly links from and to Linz, thereof 94 connections per week from Linz and 101 to Linz. Of the 94 connections from Linz, up to 49 involve railway travel and up to 45 connections consist of flight service. In addition to the morning fight offered from Linz to Vienna by Austrian Airlines and its evening flight service from Vienna to Linz six times per week, the Upper Austrians have seven daily direct rail links taking them from Linz Central Railway Station to Vienna Airport, where passengers can then continue on their journey to about 130 destinations in the Austrian Airlines global route network. In addition, Austrian Airlines offers up to two daily flights between Linz and Düsseldorf. The passengers may also choose to take one of four daily flights operated by Lufthansa from Linz to Frankfurt and then continue on Lufthansa’s worldwide route network. Accordingly, people in Upper Austria can individually choose among a large number of possibilities to decide upon the ideal travel connection, the optimal type of transport and the most suitable transport hub for them to continue on their journey. On the basis of this new travel concept, Austria is now in line with prevailing international trends.

From Linz Central Railway Station to Vienna Airport with AIRail in less than two hours
Combined with a connecting Austrian flight, passengers can take advantage of the new rail connections offered by ÖBB between Linz Central Railway Station and Vienna Airport featuring an Austrian Airlines flight number. On balance, eight train connections from Vienna to Linz are available to travelers every day, and seven from Linz to Vienna. The total time required to reach Vienna Airport from Linz Central Railway Station is one hour and 47 minutes. Rail service will be further expanded as of December 2015: ÖBB railjets and IC (Intercity) trains will be deployed at 30 minute intervals and travel time will be reduced to one hour and 42 minutes.

AIRail: Collect miles as with flights and enjoy guaranteed connections
Parallel to the flight connections, Austrian Airlines passengers can collect miles with AIRail on the Linz-Vienna route within the context of the Miles & More program. In addition, they benefit from guaranteed connections to enable them to conveniently continue their journeys, whether by plane or train. An ÖBB porter helps passengers at the train platforms in Linz and Vienna Airport with loading and unloading their baggage. Austrian Airlines’ Business Class passengers travel first class by train and also enjoy free access to the newly designed ÖBB lounge before leaving Linz Central Railway Station.

Austrian Airlines flights on Linz-Vienna route as of April 1, 2015:

Route                Days                        Flight number            Flight times
Linz-Vienna    Daily except Sunday       OS 958                    05:50 – 06:30
Vienna-Linz    Daily except Saturday     OS 957                    22:20 – 23:00