Minoan Air (Irakleion) has announced the suspension of its Lugano to Vienna and Rome Fiumicino flights effective immediately. A planned route to Paris CDG has also been dropped. In a statement, the Greek carrier blamed a lack of demand for the suspension of flights as well as a lack of appreciation for its product. It claimed it could not find any "rational explanations" as to why the Lugano - Rome route's previous operators had uplifted more than 18'000 pax/annum while Minoan itself, despite its economical fares, had struggled to reach even half that figure despite its "comfortable, safe" aircraft. Despite having cancelled all scheduled flights from its other base at Oxford Kidlington earlier in the year, the Greek operator continues to pursue charter and wet-lease opportunities with its fleet of four Fokker 50s.