Cyprus has solved one of the biggest logistical headaches of its upcoming EU Council Presidency by locking in a Public Service Obligation (PSO) contract for nonstop flights between Larnaca (LCA) and Brussels (BRU).
According to the Presidency Secretariat, the PSO tender attracted a single—but compliant—offer from Aegean Airlines, which will inaugurate the route in December 2025 and keep it running for 12 months. The schedule is weighted toward the first half of 2026, when ministerial meetings in Brussels will be most intense, with five weekly rotations from January through June, tapering to three in July and two from August to November.
Cypriot officials say the deal was “mission-critical”. During its last presidency in 2012, Cyprus had no direct link to Brussels, forcing delegates onto multi-stop routings that added cost, transit-visa complications and risk of missed connections. With the island still outside the Schengen Area, a direct service also ensures that visiting experts, journalists and lobbyists will not need an extra visa to make tight connections in another EU state.
![Cyprus secures year-long Larnaca–Brussels direct flights ahead of its 2026 EU Council Presidency]()
The flights will be bookable by the public, but the government will underwrite any revenue shortfall. Transport Minister Alexis Vafeades said the PSO was structured to comply with EU state-aid rules and consulted on “line-by-line” with the European Commission. The Directorate-General for Mobility & Transport (DG MOVE) endorsed the tender in October.
For business-travel managers the route is a windfall: it eliminates an average of three hours’ travel time each way and removes the risk of missed same-day meetings when connections through Athens, Vienna or Frankfurt are delayed. Travel-policy specialists at several multinationals with operations in Nicosia told Global Mobility News they plan to update their preferred-carrier lists immediately. HR teams overseeing short-term secondees to the Presidency secretariat will likewise be able to tighten weekend-back-home allowances, trimming costs.
Tourism stakeholders also spy an opportunity. The winter timings overlap with traditional low-season months, and tour operators hope to piggyback on the higher seat supply to market long-weekend city breaks in the reverse direction—Brussels residents to Cyprus’s milder climate.
For Cyprus itself, the direct link is another small but symbolic step toward fuller integration with the rest of the EU transport network—and a reminder that even in the age of virtual meetings, physical connectivity remains a strategic asset.
According to the Presidency Secretariat, the PSO tender attracted a single—but compliant—offer from Aegean Airlines, which will inaugurate the route in December 2025 and keep it running for 12 months. The schedule is weighted toward the first half of 2026, when ministerial meetings in Brussels will be most intense, with five weekly rotations from January through June, tapering to three in July and two from August to November.
Cypriot officials say the deal was “mission-critical”. During its last presidency in 2012, Cyprus had no direct link to Brussels, forcing delegates onto multi-stop routings that added cost, transit-visa complications and risk of missed connections. With the island still outside the Schengen Area, a direct service also ensures that visiting experts, journalists and lobbyists will not need an extra visa to make tight connections in another EU state.
The flights will be bookable by the public, but the government will underwrite any revenue shortfall. Transport Minister Alexis Vafeades said the PSO was structured to comply with EU state-aid rules and consulted on “line-by-line” with the European Commission. The Directorate-General for Mobility & Transport (DG MOVE) endorsed the tender in October.
For business-travel managers the route is a windfall: it eliminates an average of three hours’ travel time each way and removes the risk of missed same-day meetings when connections through Athens, Vienna or Frankfurt are delayed. Travel-policy specialists at several multinationals with operations in Nicosia told Global Mobility News they plan to update their preferred-carrier lists immediately. HR teams overseeing short-term secondees to the Presidency secretariat will likewise be able to tighten weekend-back-home allowances, trimming costs.
Tourism stakeholders also spy an opportunity. The winter timings overlap with traditional low-season months, and tour operators hope to piggyback on the higher seat supply to market long-weekend city breaks in the reverse direction—Brussels residents to Cyprus’s milder climate.
For Cyprus itself, the direct link is another small but symbolic step toward fuller integration with the rest of the EU transport network—and a reminder that even in the age of virtual meetings, physical connectivity remains a strategic asset.
