The low-cost airlines do not want to come to Moldova as the passenger flow here is low,” Minister of Transport and Road Infrastructure Anatol Salaru said at a meeting of the Government, assuring there are no administrative barriers as it is presumed, Info-Prim Neo reports. There are two low-cost companies that provide services in Moldova at present: Air Baltica and the Italian company Meridiana, which provides flights to Verona and Milan. Anatol Salaru considers that if more low-cost airlines come to Moldova, the national companies will face additional problems. Now they cannot regulate the frequency of the flights, land on the international airports when then want, etc. According to the minister, the liberalization of the airline services market should include provision of state support to the national airlines. He said the passengers using the services of low-cost companies have to pay additionally for on-board meals and baggage transportation Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Iurie Leanca stressed the liberalization of the airline services market is a commitment assumed by Moldova on the path to European integration. Minister of Defense Vitalie Marinuta spoke about the possibility of the low-cost airlines using the airports in Marculesti, Cahul and Balti. Premier Vlad Filat said there must be identified airport administrators (potential investors) that could later contribute to the development of the transport, logistics and other types of businesses. “From Bucharest and other Eastern European capitals, the tickets to the EU cost €80-100. You go in the morning, solve your problems and return home in the evening. Many Moldovans use the services of airlines from neighboring countries. The passenger flow in our country is low, but it will increase if the tickets are cheaper,” he said. Vlad Filat proposed holding a special meeting to examine the given issue. Recently, a number of organizations of Moldovans living or working abroad have sent an open letter to the leaders of the Alliance for European Integration, requesting the liberalization of air transportation and permission for low-cost airlines to operate in Moldova. “Today Moldova is the most expensive air travel destination in Europe. The flights to Chisinau are several times more expensive than the flights to any other European country, including Moldova's neighbors – Romania and Ukraine, or the small countries in the Balkans. The airfares are in fact an indirect tax imposed on the diaspora. These prices make us want to return home more seldom, to invite relatives more seldom, to see our children and our elderly more seldom. In the best case, we fly home via Romania or Ukraine, or pay exaggerated prices,” the letter reads.