April 10, 2013. Ural Airlines won in the all-Russian aviation contest called Russian Wings-2012, in the Airline of The Year-Group II (1-3bn passenger-km) Domestic Flights Air Carrier category. What is more, Ural Airlines was also awarded a diploma in the Airline of The Year-International Flights Air Carrier category, the airline’s press service reports.

Now the Russian Wings Prize was set up in 1997 by the Russian Association of Aircraft Operators and the aviation industry magazine Aviatransportnoe Obozreniye; for over ten years, this has been the only aviation sector prize given out to successful Russian air carriers to mark their achievements in the field of Russian civil aviation development. The prize laureates and diploma winners are selected by secret ballots on the Public Council members’ part. The Council comprises over 100 independent aviation sector experts: government authorities representatives, the aviation sector NGOs, long-service aviation industry employees, and reporters. Ural Airlines won in one of the categories in the very first year the prize was established: in 1997, the air carrier was awarded the Russian Wings Prize in the Most Efficient Company of the Year category. Over the later years, Ural Airlines have won prizes a number of times, so the award for 2012 was actually the 11th one given to the company.