Did you know? Finnair first flew to Riga in 1927, when the airline was still called Aero Oy

Flights between Helsinki and Riga are far older than Latvia's restored independence. According to Riga International Airport, the Finnish national airline started its first flights to Riga in 1927, when the company was known as Aero Oy. The airline's IATA code, AY, has remained to this day and is how Finnair is recognised around the world.

The connection was broken by the Second World War. The airport recalls that the last Finnish aircraft flew from Riga to Helsinki in 1940; flights were then suspended as Europe was divided and Latvia lost its independence.

Regular service returned on 30 March 1992, when Finnair commenced direct flights to Riga, a little over half a year after Latvia restored its independence in the autumn of 1991. The airport says the Speaker of the Finnish Parliament opened that first flight, and that the route carried about 121,000 passengers in 2019, before the pandemic.

The story shows how some of today's short Baltic routes have pre-war roots. Travellers flying between Riga and Helsinki now should check current schedules directly with the airline, since the airport's article describes the route's history and its 2022 plans rather than the present timetable.