The prime ministers of the three countries made no concrete decisions at Friday's Baltic Council of Ministers meeting on the Latvian carrier's future. AirBaltic has been running at a loss.

Sander Salmu, deputy secretary general for mobility at the Ministry of Climate, said that airBaltic is strategically important for Estonia's air connections and that the state considers it important for the company to achieve its financial goals and demonstrate stable development.

"At the same time, acquiring a stake in the company is still not on the agenda. Estonia has primarily focused on developing and supporting Tallinn Airport in order to secure air connections. The growth in passenger numbers in recent years confirms that this strategy is working," Salmu noted.

Work is also continuing to keep the airport's aviation charges competitive within the region, to help motivate various airlines to grow destinations and departures, Salmu added.

Latvian Prime Minister Evika Siliņa at the start of the month proposed the Baltic states jointly coordinate airBaltic, adding she would be discussing the matter with her Estonian and Lithuanian counterparts.

A government spokesperson told ERR that the three leaders were "briefed on the current state of developments related to airBaltic," with pledges made for them to be kept up to date, but nothing more.

Prime Minister Kristen Michal (Reform) said Friday Estonia supports airBaltic "indirectly," adding flying from Tallinn is a profitable activity for airBaltic, so far as he knows, and will hopefully continue to be so.

The Estonian government last summer rejected an offer from Latvia's Ministry of Transport to buy up to a 10 percent stake in airBaltic for €14 million. The airline made the same offer both to the Lithuanian state and to German carrier Lufthansa, and the latter decided to accept it.

At the time, Infrastructure Minister Kuldar Leis (Reform) said Estonia's plan is to rapidly develop Tallinn Airport, which he said would also benefit airBaltic, helped along by airport fees being frozen for three years.

Tallinn Airport is also set to be substantially expanded and upgraded in the coming years.

While airBaltic is due to be getting a short-term loan of €30 million from the Latvian state, this falls far short of what is needed.

The airline reported revenues last year of €779.3 million against net losses of €44.5 million. In its annual report for the previous financial year, the company had stated it would need at least €100 million in fresh funding in order to survive the following winter season.

airBaltic's stock market listing has currently been put on hold, given market conditions and last year's financial results, this is not considered a realistic source of funding.

The airline is also required to draw up a new business strategy by June, including a review of its Middle East flight plans, given the current situation in that region too.

Estonia's state-owned carrier Nordica filed for bankruptcy in late 2024 and made its final flight earlier this month.

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