Hungarian air traffic control company HungaroControl under ministry oversight: CEO dismissed

The National Economy Ministry has taken over oversight of air safety company HungaroControl from August 1, the ministry said on Thursday.

The company’s strategic aim is to create and maintain a safe and continuous flow of air traffic, the ministry said. Under the instructions of National Economy Minister Márton Nagy, further priorities include “a significant improvement of domestic air travel, closer cooperation with the European support organisation Eurocontrol, and a more effective representation of Hungarian interests,” the ministry said in a statement. It will also work to stabilise transit traffic in Hungarian air space “at a manageable level”, and to review and, if necessary, modify its prices, it said.

The ministry has appointed former Malév marketing director Ferenc Turi as HungaroControl’s CEO from August 1. The previous CEO, László Tóth,  left his position by mutual agreement, telex.hu wrote. Before, the minister summoned him and instructed him to compile an action plan aiming to end air traffic chaos. We wrote about the issue HERE. The step suggested the Orbán cabinet held HungaroControl responsible for the many delays and cancellations this summer. Experts believe the problem is much more complex.

Orbán cabinet: Budapest Airport’s annual revenue could reach HUF 60-80 bn

The Liszt Ferenc International Airport is estimated to yield up to 60-80 billion forints (EUR 151.8m-202.5m) a year, Csaba Dömötör, a state secretary of the cabinet office, said on Thursday.

Dömötör said on Facebook that multiple “left-wing media outlets” had recently published reports about the state’s reacquisition of the airport suggesting that the transaction was not worthwhile.

He said these reports ignored the fact that passenger traffic at the airport was constantly rising and would soon set a new record. This, he said, could bring the state an even bigger annual profit than the 30 billion forints seen in 2022.

The state secretary said interest on inter-company loans given by the airport was also generating income for the state.

“All in all, even a conservative estimate indicates that the two sources of revenue can generate an annual 60-80 billion forints, which could be increased significantly in the future through a successful management of the airport,” Dömötör said.

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• Hungarian air traffic controllers assert delays are not solely their fault