Pulkovo airport of St. Petersburg has served eight million passengers this year. The 8-million mark was passed in early December: 28-year-old Pavel Sviridov was served when he was making a return trip from St. Petersburg back to Ekaterinbourg. He was on Flight 403 operated by GTK Rossiya, the major carrier operating out of Pulkovo.

The 8-million passenger was greeted by the Pulkovo airport administration. They presented Pavel Sviridov with a photo camera and an open-date air ticket for a return trip on any of the GTK Rossiya services.

The eight-million mark for the airport of St. Petersburg is a new record; since the 1990s the airport never served that many passengers. By the end of this year, Pulkovo expects the total number of passengers served to reach 8.5 million. This is 26% more than in 2009, and a bit higher compared with pre-crisis times.