air

Reopening on the horizon? New Air France flights to Budapest

airplane-travel-seat-chair

From July 5th, Air France will expand to 14 flights a week between Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Budapest. The airline will offer several seasonal and new routes, mainly to French, Southern European and African destinations.

According to the airline’s statement to Airportal.hu, during the busiest summer period, Air France will expand its offered flights to the Hungarian capital. There are currently four flights a week from Paris to Liszt Ferenc Airport, and the offer is gradually expanding during until peak period,

so from July 5 to the end of August there will be 14 flights a week.

Air France has also announced a timetable for its summer short- and medium-haul flights and soon publishes its long-haul flights. A total of 80 seasonal flights will be launched, 14 of which will be new routes to European and North African destinations.

• From Paris-Orly, Bari will be available from 31st May and Ibiza and Algiers from 28th June.
• There will also be flights from Charles de Gaulle to Tangier, Agadir, Monastir, Malta, Gran Canaria, Corfu and Rhodes from 5th July.
• From Marseille Airport, you can also reach Catania from June 26th and Corfu from July 19th.
• Two new flights will start in Nice from June 28th, with London and Tunis becoming available.

Air France will operate a total of 41 seasonal flights on its domestic network during the peak period, including eight new connections.

• From June 5th, there will be flights from Charles de Gaulle Airport to Ajaccio, the capital of Corsica, Calvi and Figari will be available.
• From June 25th, it will also be possible to fly from Perpignan to Brest, Strasbourg and Nantes.
• There will also be flights from Biarritz to Caen from that day.

The announced schedule may change as the rules on travel restrictions change. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Air France has been constantly adapting its offer to the health situation.

Wizz Air prepares for gradual travel recovery into summer

Tourism reopening? EasyJet to fly more from late May

Air France currently offers free bookings, modifications and vouchers for all cancellations in all ticket categories. If the flight is cancelled by the airline, the passenger can request a rebooking for a later flight, request a full refund, or receive a ticket price in the form of a refundable coupon.

6 Hungarian cities among the most air-polluted settlements in Europe

In terms of air quality, Hungary has got critical results based on the freshly published ranking of IQ Air, according to which six Hungarian settlements have been listed among the 200 most polluted cities in Europe. But which are these and what is the reason behind it?!

As we previously reported, poor air quality is a recurring problem in Hungary. As a result, certain traffic restrictions are introduced every year to reduce air pollution in major Hungarian settlements. Despite all these efforts, Hungary has received bad news again in terms of air quality. Within the framework of the freshly published ranking of IQ Air – based on 2020 data -, thousands of European settlements were examined, out of which six Hungarian cities got listed among the 200 most polluted cities in Europe.

The worst result was measured in Sajószentpéter, which was placed 62nd in the European ranking.

The Hungarian settlement is preceded by cities in Balkan countries and in Poland, and Milan, Las Palmas, and the Serbian Novi Sad also achieved even worse results. The Hungarian city of Miskolc is also listed among the worst 100, where there was only one month – last June – when the concentration of airborne dust did not exceed the WHO health limit.

The deterioration of the air quality of these settlements can be explained by an increase in the concentration of airborne dust, which is generated by heating.

Therefore, it is no coincidence that Sajószentpéter was only able to meet the health limit set by WHO in the spring and summer periods. The list of the 200 most polluted European cities also includes Kazincbarcika (107th), Szeged (184th), Debrecen (181st), and Nyíregyháza (198th). Budapest is ranked 280th, according to the IQ Air 2020 summary.

Some positive news is that among the examined Hungarian settlements, Balassagyarmat had the best air quality where the annual average concentration of airborne dust was below the WHO limit and did not even exceed it during eight months of the year. Even though the annual average concentration was above the limit in the case of Sarród, Sopron, and Kecskemét, the air quality in these Hungarian settlements also received positive results.

As Hungarian news portal Pénzcentrum reports, considering the pandemic, the quality of air has a significant role: a previous study found that long-term exposure to air pollution could increase the risk of death from coronavirus infection worldwide by 15%. Therefore, we hope that the air quality result of 2020 will improve this year.

pollution europe hungary
Read alsoShocking! Every fifth to sixth death can be attributed to environmental pollution in Hungary

Wizz Air reveals its opinion about the Covid passport

Wizzair

The Hungarian low-cost airline is open to any solution to prevent the virus’s spread in the long term. For the time being, they have more trust in the vaccination than the protracted Covid passport.

Wizz Air is in constant contact with the International Air Transport Association (IATA), according to whom, the introduction of the Covid passport is an important step towards the return of air traffic.

As the Hungarian news portal Forbes reports, this is actually an app in which passenger vaccinations and negative test results are recorded. The application checks whether the traveller has a negative Covid test or, if the destination country requires a coronavirus vaccination, the person has received the required vaccine. The application also shows that the competent authority authenticates the requested information.

According to IATA, it is only a matter of weeks, and the so-called Covid passport will be introduced. 

According to András Radó, Communication Manager of Wizz Air,

 “We have to be pragmatic. Passengers and the travel industry have so far had great patience with the challenges caused by COVID-19. Still, this patience will soon run out due to a slow, bureaucratic, seemingly IT-driven vaccine passport development. The aviation industry has proven to be the safest way to travel and believes that the measures put in place by the national government, such as vaccinations, together with responsible hygiene by passengers and the airline, are the only way to ensure the quickest possible return to normal.”

For the time being, Wizz Air believes that vaccination and fast antigen tests are the most reliable solutions; however, they are open to other solutions as well.

In October 2020, the leader of Wizz Air, József Váradi, described the situation caused by the coronavirus as the most significant intellectual challenge of his professional career. He also added that as a leader, he really enjoys the challenge that the situation created. They have developed a tangible strategy that is sometimes stressful but exciting. He did not expect the world to change dramatically after the epidemic is over and that our travel habits would not change permanently due to the downtime. “Life has to go on. What we see now is a temporary situation. Life is always progressive. We will move on from here.”

wizz air new aircraft
Read alsoHungarian Wizz Air aims to become the biggest flight company of the Middle East

Climate concerns still on public’s mind during pandemic

Somoskő Castle

Concerns over the impact of climate change have not waned in spite of the immediate threat of the coronavirus pandemic in Hungary, according to a survey by economic research institute Századvég and the Climate Policy Institute.

The survey found that the overwhelming majority of Hungarians is concerned by climate change, the institute said in a statement, adding that 90 percent of respondents found the issue worrying.

Altogether 72 percent of respondents said their interest in climate change had not waned despite the pandemic, with 17 percent saying their interest in it had risen.

Fully 77 percent said they did not believe global warming and the pandemic were related, as against 16 percent who said they were.

A total of 82 percent of respondents said climate change was already having an impact on the everyday lives of Hungarians.

An even bigger majority, 94 percent, said that unless the situation changes, it would also make things more difficult for future generations.

The survey found that middle-aged economically active people are less concerned about climate change than young people and the elderly.

It also revealed that rural residents with lower incomes who are likely to have a more first-hand experience of the effects of climate change on agriculture were the most concerned about its impact.

As we wrote today, Hungary has breached EU air quality rules by failing to comply with the daily limit for particulates in the air and for overstepping the duration for exceeding these limits, the European Court of Justice said, details HERE.

Dió-walnut
Read alsoHungarian walnuts in danger? – mass decay everywhere

Warning sign: deteriorating air quality in Hungary

budapest-smog

Article by Melinda Cooper Melinda Cooper

According to the 2020 edition of Health at a Glance: Europe the emission of toxic particles per capita in the air have fallen in most of the European countries between 2005 and 2017 – but not in Hungary.

Particular matters, such as  and  are one of the main polluters with adverse health effects. These are small particles of less than 10 microns in diameter ( ) or even as small as 2.5 microns () which are suspended in the air, and they are mainly the result of the combustion of fuels for energy generation, domestic heating and vehicle engines. The smaller the particles, the more toxic they are as they can penetrate deep in the respiratory system and can cause severe damage to the health.

The OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) published their latest biannual report in December 2020, and figures show that within 31 observed countries in Europe Hungary ranks the worst in-terms of improvement.  Here the air quality had deteriorated significantly in the decade before 2017, rising from 4kg  per capita in 2005 to nearly 5kg by 2017. The only other country with negative results is Bulgaria, with a change from 4kg  per capita to 4.3kg.

The situation is slightly different in the capital, as Budapest shows one of the best results within the European capitals, where the air quality has improved by nearly 25% between 2003 and 2018. This is still far above the WHO guideline, but none the less it’s a good sign.

In regards of our neighbours: Romania shows no change from the 6kg / capita, but all other countries neighbouring Hungary managed to achieve great improvements, especially the Slovak Republic, which nearly doubled its air quality.

The effects of bad air are reflected in the rates of premature deaths per population, where Hungary ranges between 120-180 death per 100.000 population, alongside countries like Bulgaria, Romania, Poland and Croatia. 

It is interesting, that when the population was surveyed about their perception of the air quality in their own country,  Hungarians’ opinion was in line with the objectively measured figures, but in the countries where air quality has improved, the population perception was the opposite – they believed that the air has deteriorated, despite the fact that it was improving. 

Sadly, our country leads in several other tables of negative connotation in this report, such as avoidable mortality (deaths that could have been potentially avoided with better public health policies or healthcare, such as ischaemic heart disease, lung cancer, accidents or vaccination), number of consultations with doctors, hospitalisation times, alcohol consumption ( including among young people) or smoking.

One big positive surprise is the data about suicide, in which Hungary was leading for decades, but new figures show that between 2000 and 2017 this rate has fallen by nearly 50%.

budapest_smog_fog_autumn_kató_alpár_daily_news_hungary polluted
Read alsoDo you know what claims much more lives in Hungary than the coronavirus?

Poor air quality plagues Hungarian cities

rain in debrecen

Air quality has deteriorated in Hungary, mainly in north-eastern Hungarian cities, due to a high concentration of airborne particulates, the National Public Health Centre (NNK) said on Thursday.

The authority declared air quality to be “dangerous” in Putnok and Sajószentpéter, in north-eastern Hungary.

Air quality has deteriorated to unhealthy levels in Kazincbarcika and Miskolc.

Concentrations of particulates are also considered to be too high in other cities and towns nationwide, including in Debrecen, Eger and Nyíregyháza, the authority said.

Vulnerable groups such as children, people suffering from a chronic illness and the elderly are the particular targets of the warning.

budapest_smog_fog_autumn_kató_alpár_daily_news_hungary polluted
Read alsoThe air quality is dangerous in some Hungary cities

The air quality is dangerous in some Hungary cities

budapest_smog_fog_autumn_kató_alpár_daily_news_hungary polluted

Air quality has deteriorated in north-eastern Hungary due to a high concentration of airborne particulates, the National Public Health Centre (NNK) said on Tuesday.

NNK declared air quality to be “dangerous” in Putnok, Sajószentpéter and Kazincbarcika.

Air quality has deteriorated to unhealthy levels in Miskolc, Salgótarján and Ajka.

Concentrations of particulates are also considered to be too high in other cities and towns nationwide, including Budapest, Esztergom, Székesfehérvár, Pécs, Tatabánya, Vác, Várpalota and other towns, NNK said.

Vulnerable groups such as children, people suffering from a chronic illness and the elderly are the particular targets of the warning.

Air quality is expected to improve in Budapest over the next few days, the municipality told MTI.

industry, factory
Read alsoHungary and Poland among countries with most polluted air

Hungarian family kicked off plane in the U.S. because 2-year-old would not wear a mask

Hungarian family on airplane

A Hungarian family living in Colorado got kicked off a plane because their two-year-old daughter refused to wear a mask on board. It was a traumatising and humiliating experience, the couple said.

Eli Orbán tweeted about the incident: “Today we got kicked off of a United flight going from Denver to Newark because our 2yo would not “comply” and keep her mask on.” Later, she shared her experience on Fox News as well.

The Colorado family is outraged. They are frequent flyers, and this has never happened to them before. Even though they have flown several times since the pandemic started. They are also confused by the tweets of another mom who flew with her 2-year-old without a mask, and they were not asked to get off the plane.

Eliz told Fox News that they are frequent flyers. They are silver premier members with United Airline and have flown with them many times before, even during the pandemic. They fly a lot because all of their family lives on the East coast, and this is the only way for their parents to see their grandchild. The family wanted to fly to New Jersey to be with family for the holidays, so they booked a flight with United.

budapest airport inside
Read alsoHere is the list of cities you can fly to from Budapest in December

Eliz Orban claimed that the staff was rude from the moment they boarded the aeroplane. After the flight attendant learnt that their daughter was two years old, they insisted that she put on a mask.

“After that, the flight attendants wouldn’t talk to us” Eliz said. 

 Since they did not have a mask for her, the staff provided them with one, but they could not make their daughter wear it. She kept tilting her head away and started crying. According to Eliz, no one tried to help them, and they got no warning about being kicked off.

“We felt like we got no warning, no working with us, no asking questions, nothing to help in the situation. It was just like, ‘Oh, well your 2-year-old is not complying, you guys are off the plane.”

The flight attendants kept walking by and checking what they were doing, that was the only interaction, and the next thing they knew was a supervisor asked them to get off the plane.

“I have never been more confused in my life. I did not know how to react.”

The family got off the plane. After Eliz’s video went viral on Twitter, United Airlines spokesperson said:

“The health and safety of our employees and customers is our highest priority which is why we have a multi-layered set of policies, including mandating that everyone on board two and older wears a mask. These procedures are not only backed by guidance from the CDC and our partners at the Cleveland Clinic, but they are also consistent across every major airline. We are investigating this specific incident and have made contact with the family.”

Eliz mentioned during the interview that she saw on Twitter that there was another mother who flew with the same airline, from the same airport, on the same day, and her two-year-old did not wear a mask on the plane either, and yet they were not kicked off the plane.

“It makes no sense that one person would get kicked off, and another person is not for the exact same reason.”

bud airport cargo
Read alsoBudapest Airport delivers record cargo traffic in November

Air quality worsens in Hungarian cities

fog pécs

Air quality has deteriorated across Hungary due to a high concentration of airborne particulates, the National Public Health Centre (NNK) said on Tuesday.

NNK declared air quality to be “dangerous” in Putnok, in northeast Hungary.

Air quality has deteriorated to unhealthy levels in several towns and cities nationwide, including Kazincbarcika, Miskolc, Pécs and Várpalota, NNK said on Tuesday.

Concentrations of particulates are also considered to be too high in the cities of Budapest, Székesfehérvár, Veszprém, Győr, Sopron and other towns, NNK said.

NNK advised vulnerable groups such as children, people suffering from a chronic illness and the elderly in those cities to spend less time outdoors as no improvement in air quality is likely over the next few days.

As we wrote before, 13 thousand people die in Hungary because of the polluted air, which is as harmful as smoking. Hungary is currently fourth on the list of those countries that have the worst air quality in the European Union. More details HERE.

budapest_real_estate_building_flat rent autumn_panorama dnh_kató_alpár_
Read alsoBudapest has the worst air quality in Europe after the epidemic

Do you know what claims much more lives in Hungary than the coronavirus?

budapest_smog_fog_autumn_kató_alpár_daily_news_hungary polluted

According to experts, 13 thousand people die in Hungary because of the polluted air, which is as harmful as smoking. Hungary is currently fourth on the list of those countries that have the worst air quality in the European Union.

The Climate Policy Institute of the Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC) shared its research regarding the issue yesterday, which says that, lately, the government has implemented many measures to decrease air pollution in the country. György Kerekes, the director of the institute, added that the government tightened the energy performance standards for the newly-built houses and flats from 2021 which

can help a lot in reducing the amount of energy needed for heating.

For example, they banned people from burning fallen leaves and started to support programmes aiming at the development of heating systems and improving the energy efficiency of the buildings, Napi reported. 

Mr Kerekes stated that people can also do a lot to improve air quality. He reminded that Hungary is the fourth on the list of those countries in the European Union that have the worst air quality. He said that the outdated heating systems cause a lot of problems during winters. However,

not only the devices and their technologies are old, but the fuel people burn in them are also low quality (rags, rubbish, plastics).

Air quality could be improved already in the short run by the modernisation of the heating systems and using high-quality fuel like briquet or pellets. In the long run, on the other hand, renewable energy produced by households as well as heating system development could be the solution. The quantity of particulate matter (PM) could be reduced if the government provided dry firewood for everybody in need.

Interestingly, based on the statistics,

80 pc of the PM in Hungary comes from Poland and Romania.

Therefore, Hungarian efforts are not enough, and regional cooperation is inevitable to reduce their PM emission.

According to mcc.hu, the Mathias Corvinus Collegium and the Századvég Foundation established the Climate Policy Institute. It has sprung from the founders’ understanding that climate change and preparing for its effects will be significant social and economic policy issues in the coming years. Adaptation to climate change requires a new strategy and the coordination of hitherto distant disciplines that the professional workshop wishes to undertake.

The studies of the Climate Policy Institute focus on five areas:

energy, nature conservation, agriculture, the protection of inanimate environmental elements (water, air, soil), and urbanism. 

This professional workshop is intended to accommodate a green approach and to contribute to the training of responsibly minded and acting citizens necessary for successful environment protection and nature conservation. The director of the Institute is Dr György Kerekes, a lawyer specialised in environmental law.

Do you use drones in Hungary? Here are the new strict restrictions

drone

From January, the drone (unmanned aerial vehicle) can only be flown using the mobile application of HungaroControl, according to the bill of the Ministry of Innovation and Technology (ITM). In order to increase aviation safety, the app will provide information for drone operators about airspace usage opportunities, restricted or prohibited areas.

The general EU regulations on drones came into force last summer and should have been applied from July 2020, but the deadline has been extended to the end of 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The elaboration of certain detailed rules remained the responsibility of the Member States; the ITM proposal contains the elements of the new Hungarian drone regulation at the legal level. The bill creates the necessary framework for safe operation, flexible and innovative use of drones. Under the bill, the aviation authority will also register drones, unmanned aerial vehicle systems and their operators,

after which Hungarian airspace can only be used by registered vehicles.

The newly introduced restrictions of drone usage have become reasonable, since not a long time ago an investigative journalist of a Hungarian news portal committed illicit data acquisition on the property of Lőrinc Mészáros.

The police are prosecuting the unknown perpetrator for the crime of illegal data acquisition, which offence may be punishable by up to 3 years’ imprisonment under the Penal Code – reported by Media1.

According to the new regulation:

  • Using the application of HungaroControl that provides up-to-date airspace information and informs droners about restrictions will be mandatory.
  • Game drones are exempt from this requirement.
  • Greater protection for the fundamental rights to privacy and peace of home will be provided.
  • Under the proposed provisions, an unmanned aircraft may only be used in ad hoc airspace over populated areas.

As the Hungarian news portal Telex reports, the designation of an ad hoc airspace for a maximum of seven days may continue to be requested from the military aviation authority. If this process is not carried out, droning within a populated area shall be considered a traffic offence. For the sake of undisturbed family life, a person who takes a photograph of an apartment or residence without the consent of the persons concerned may be held liable for a breach of privacy.

Along with the new regulations, the concept of an uncrewed toy aircraft will be introduced, referring to a drone as an aerial vehicle lighter than 120 grams and unable to move more than 100 meters away from the operator – which will not be subject to registration.

According to Gépmax, drone regulation is also urgent because various damages can be measured at any time with these devices; they can be used for area measurement, mapping with orthophotos, plant counting, yield estimation, plant analysis. They help to determine the nutrient supply of the soil, weed control, condition assessment of inland drainage and irrigation canals, control of the operation of irrigation equipment; furthermore, they will help in nutrient and pesticide application.

Accordingly, drones will play a revolutionary role from agricultural aspect as well.

The overall benefits of drones can be measured in billions of dollars. Regulation is also important because, for example, EU air traffic could increase by 50% over the next 20 years: by 2035, the unmanned aerial vehicle industry will directly employ more than 100,000 people and generate more than € 10 billion a year in economic activity.

Read also:

These Hungarian cities hit by poor air quality

Budapest-district-Újpest

Several Hungarian towns and cities are hit by poor air quality due to a high concentration of airborne dust particles, the National Public Health Centre (NNK) said on Monday.

The air quality in Budapest, Szeged, Székesfehérvár and Szolnok has deteriorated to unhealthy levels, NNK said in a statement.

Concentrations of particulate matter are also considered to be too high in the cities of Győr, Debrecen, Miskolc and Nyíregyháza and in a dozen towns, NNK said.

NNK advised vulnerable groups such as children, people suffering from a chronic illness and the elderly in those cities to spend less time outdoors as no improvement in air quality is likely over the next few days.

industry, factory
Read alsoHungary and Poland among countries with most polluted air

Good news! Emirates to restart Dubai-Budapest flight in October!

Emirates_Budapest_flight

The Dubai-based airline will restart its flight two days a week – on Wednesdays and Saturdays – between the two cities.

Thanks to the reopening of Dubai, Hungarian passengers can travel to Dubai again for business or leisure.

From 25th October, the flights will be operating according to the winter schedule:

Departure (local time)
Arrival (local time)
Dubai: 08:45
Budapest: 12:40
Budapest: 15:10
Dubai: 23:20

The flight can be booked for Economy and Business classes. Furthermore, Emirates provides flexible ticket booking conditions for its Hungarian passengers. For all Emirates tickets purchased before 31st March 2021, it is possible to rebook, or for tickets purchased but not used, the airline will provide an extension of the validity of the tickets for an additional two years, or unused tickets can be utilised as travel coupons.

Read also: Budapest Airport introduces new flight tracking application

The Middle East metropolis was the first in the world to be chosen as a “Safe Destination”, recommended by the World Tourism Organisation, thanks to the measures taken to ensure the health and safety of visitors.

Accordingly, the Dubai-based airline company complies with all hygiene requirements in relation to the pandemic:

  • Boarding from Budapest can only be realised with a valid, printed, negative PCR test in English or Arabic. In the case of other departure locations, local regulations apply.
  • Passengers are provided with a hygiene kit upon boarding and are required to wear a mask throughout the flight and at the airports.
  • Aircraft are regularly disinfected with a special antiviral chemical.
  • The clean air in the cabin is ensured by the so-called HEPA system, which filters out 99.9 per cent of viruses and fungi, so the air on the plane is completely changed every 2-3 minutes while travelling.
  • In addition to their uniforms, flight attendants shall wear protective equipment manufactured for this purpose, and the on-board menu shall be served in hygienic packaging.
  • At Dubai Airport, non-contact body temperature measurements are performed, and check-in is completely non-contact.

As Hungarian news portal Turizmus.com reports, Emirates covers the healthcare costs of its Hungarian passengers up to HUF 51 million (~EUR 141,460 ) and the hotel costs related to quarantine up to HUF 34,000 (~EUR 94) per day if they are diagnosed with COVID-19 infection during their trip.

Reimbursement – which is automatically included with all Emirates flights purchased – is valid for 31 days from the date of travel until 31st December 2020, regardless of cabin class and destination.

Emirates will restart four more European flights in early November: Bologna, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, and Lyon, thanks to which 31 cities and 99 destinations globally will be available in the airline’s international network.

Read also7 reasons why renting a car is the best option for your holiday in Dubai

Deadly hot air balloon ride! Husband witnesses wife’s death

flaming hot air balloon accident

The victim, Hajnalka, was given the hot air balloon ride as a birthday present from her husband. However, the celebration turned into tragedy when the balloon caught fire on Saturday.

The pilot was on board with three ladies, amongst them Hajnalka, who received the celestial voyage from her husband for her birthday. Her husband had to watch from the ground as the flaming balloon pulled his wife high up into the air, and then as she fell helplessly to her death. The accident was witnessed by several other people who were working on the nearby fields, Blikk reported. Many hurried to the aid of the victims, but Hajnalka could not be saved.

“My daughter and grandchildren were playing in the garden. They are always happy to watch the hot air balloons going up. It was already grey when my daughter rushed inside, ‘Dad, that hot air balloon is on fire!’ she shouted. The vehicle was 150-200 meters high, burned, and objects slipped off of it,” György Hoppár, president of the Vál Civil Guard recalled. He immediately called his companions, they set off by car to help, and soon found the spot where the hot air balloon had hit the ground.

“There were four in the balloon basket, three passengers besides the pilot. The balloon was already on fire when it hit the ground, both the passengers and the pilot got burned, they were trying to jump out, injured. The three of them succeeded, but not one lady, and as the balloon suddenly became lighter, it immediately rose back into the air. And there it fell to pieces,” the civil guard added.

Hajnalka’s husband witnessed the tragedy up close. He saw the burning balloon soar high with Hajnalka still in it. Civil guards and rescue workers struggled at dusk to search for the woman, after an hour and a half of searching, they found her dead, completely burned, with a gas cylinder next to her.

“We started flying together more than twenty years ago. We flew together several times. The pilot is a well-trained, highly experienced professional. It is quite certain that he did everything he could to put out the fire and put his passengers to the ground safely,” Norbert Mészáros, Secretary General of the Hungarian Balloon Association, told Blikk. “This is a smaller basket with four people in an area of ​​just one square meter and 3-4 pieces of 23-pound gas cylinders next to them. There may have been a leak. Although pilots are being trained to deal with emergencies, it may not have been possible to stop this with a fire extinguisher,” he added.

The pilot was transported to the intensive care unit after the accident, but he got out of there, and his condition stabilised. The police have initiated criminal proceedings against an unknown perpetrator for endangering fatal aviation. The hot air balloon flights continued the next day, without any restrictions being ordered.

bus tragedy hungary
Read alsoOne dies, 34 injured in Polish bus accident in South Hungary

bicycle accident hungary
Read alsoAwful! Dozens of people injured at bicycle race accident in Hungary – VIDEO

Budapest accident
Read alsoTragedy! Walking mother killed by suicide attempt in Budapest

Discover Hungary by hot air balloon or helicopter!

Budapest, DreamAir, Hungary

International travelling by aeroplane to abroad is not recommended this year, but that does not mean that you cannot discover a country from above. Three companies in Hungary organise unique hot air balloon and helicopter tours to admire the beauties of Lake Balaton, Budapest or the Great Hungarian Plain.

Travelo reported that the company Fly-Coop takes passengers on tours almost every day. The company offers many activities and programs including travelling by hot air balloon, helicopter and even old-fashioned aeroplanes for nostalgic passengers. Besides the air taxi services, passengers can order 47–50 minutes of flights taking off from the area of Lake Balaton, Velence and some points of Budapest.

FlyCoop, Hungary, Budapest
Photo: www.facebook.com/flycoop.hu

Another company, called Air Panorama specialises in the areas of Budapest. Besides the capital, AirPanorama flies passengers to Esztergom, Szentendre and Visegrád. 

AirPanorama, Hungary
Photo: www.facebook.com/Hungarian-Air-Panorama

The company DreamAir mainly takes passengers to Lake Balaton to admire its unique features, for example, Tihany and Badacsony, while FlyBook mainly shows the area of Győr, Gemenc and Pannonhalma. 

DreamAir, Hungary
Photo: www.facebook.com/DreamAirTeam
Read alsoWonderful Budapest: fascinating ways to go sightseeing in the air, on water, and on land – photos

Hungary and Poland among countries with most polluted air

industry, factory

The Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago reported in a new study that Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Hungary belong to those European countries where the air is the most polluted. Other countries include Belarus, Lithuania and Latvia.

Kafkadesk reported that Poland stands out as the most polluted country in Europe. The study writes that “the cities of Warsaw and Lodz, and their surrounding areas, see high levels of particulate pullulation,” furthermore “residents in Warsaw may loose 1.2 years life expectancy.” Poland is followed by Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. As Poland’s reliance on coal power is accounting for more than 70 per cent of energy supply, this seems to be the reason behind the country’s bad air quality. 

Additionally, the report finds that the most polluted areas are Moravskoslezský in the Czech Republic, Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County in Hungary, Košický in Slovakia, and Warsaw in Poland.

There is some good news, though. Compared to the situation two decades ago, Europeans as a whole have gained nine months in life expectancy. Just in the Silesian province of southern Poland, inhabitants gained two years. During the first few months of the coronavirus epidemic, the V4 countries, especially Poland and Slovakia, have seen a considerable improvement in air quality as many people stayed at home and did not drive a car for weeks, even months.

As part of the European Green Deal, Poland will also be among the primary recipients of funds that aims the transition from coal to cleaner energy sources.

Read the full study HERE

industry, factory
Read alsoHungary and Poland among countries with most polluted air

Flying with low-cost airlines today from Budapest – a firsthand account from a Hungarian

wizz air

Ági Szilágyi, a journalist of airportal.hu wrote her experiences during her travel to Malta. She said that the airport was almost empty so people could get through the security check quickly. However, the plane was crowded, and passengers had to keep a distance from each other. Furthermore, many passengers did not wear a face mask during the trip.

Ms Szilágyi added that Malta is among the safest states in Europe where the number of new cases has been between 0 and 15 for weeks. Therefore, it is green on the ‘virus map’ of the Hungarian authorities, so there is no need to go into quarantine if somebody comes back from the island.

They travelled on Tuesday and

Budapest Airport was almost empty.

As a result, they could pass the security check in 2 only minutes. Warning signs were almost everywhere about the importance of keeping a distance from each other. In the Mastercard lounge, the menu changed from tortillas and salads to prepacked sandwiches which were delicious – according to Ms Szilágyi.

They could board only through the first door of the plane; thus, it took longer than they were used to. Many passengers did not wear a face mask during the flight, and cabin crew did not warn him about that obligation. Airportal.hu says that this is not the first time one of their readers reports about that troubling malpractice.

Wizz Air still separates members of the travelling families if they do not buy a seat reservation. However, they then try to change their seats which can

make it almost impossible to track down the chain of a possible infection.

There are no Wizz Air magazines in the back of the seats, so the cabin crew tells the menu.

In Malta, nobody checked their temperature, but everybody had to fill a data sheet and put it into a box at the airport. Interestingly, the local airport was much more crowded compared to Budapest Airport. She also wrote that there is no overtourism in Malta which makes the island much more enjoyable than before.

Hungarian emerald tree to resolve global climate problems?!

emerald tree climate protection

“We hope it will be the tree for the future” – this is how the emerald tree is described by the Hungarian company Sunwo Ltd., according to whom the special tree could be used to purify the air that would serve as an appropriate solution for global climate problems.

Emerald trees absorb 100 tons of carbon dioxide per hectare per year, while its roots clean the soil. It has a special resistance; therefore, it can survive in extreme conditions as well. Thanks to a Hungarian patent, it requires half as much water as a traditional forest. The emerald tree grows so fast that the plantation can be cut three times within thirty years. Furthermore, it serves as an excellent raw material.

The company established the first carbon climate plantation at Lake Balaton.

As Hungarian news portal Szeretlek Magyarország reports, the special tree has been developed based on serious scientific experiments, in which 8 countries, 2 academies, 6 universities, and several research institutes were involved.

Beyond industrial utilisation, it can contribute to global climate protection as well.

Based on the fact that more and more African countries are interested in the Hungarian emerald tree, the company hopes that soon it will gain greater popularity domestically and internationally as well.

Related articles: