Smoking lounges opened

On 11 March, 2008, the international tobacco company JTI officially opened two Winston Smoker Lounges in Sheremetyevo Airport’s Terminal C. Sheremetyevo 2 already has 23 smoking stations. This will allow smoking passengers departing from Terminal C to spend nice time in a comfortable smoking lounges before their flight, enjoying cigars and cigarettes of their favorite brands and communicating with other air travelers.

Sheremetyevo and JTI have joined their efforts to create comfortable conditions at the airport for smoking passengers, without infringing on the rights of non-smokers. For this purpose, smoking lounges and stations are equipped with state-of-the-art ventilation systems.

According to JTI’s Vice-president Edouard Touma, smoking lounges are opened in Sheremetyevo to provide due reception and the same quality of service to both smoking and non smoking passengers. Mr. Touma mentioned that such lounges had been opened in the world’s biggest airports, in Munich, Bali, Geneva, Zurich, Athens, and other cities.

The smoking lounges and stations in Sheremetyevo are situated and marked so that tobacco lovers could easily find and use them. Due to the location and equipment of smoking areas, tobacco smoke does not reach non-smoking passengers so that their comfort and peace be not disturbed.

Sheremetyevo International Airport. Russia’s biggest airport in terms of regular international carriage (over 60% of the market). By 2015 Sheremetyevo intends to become the best hub airport in Europe in terms of passenger service quality. It is expected that by 2015 the airport will receive 35 million passengers annually. Its quality management system has been certified under the standard ISO 9001:2000.

JT International. One of the world’s major tobacco producers with sales worth USD 14.4 billion in 2007. The portfolio of cigarette brands includes Winston, Camel, Mild Seven, Benson & Hedges, Silk Cut, LD, Sobranie and Glamour. By the end of 2008, JTI will open in 17 international airports (receiving in total 200 million passengers annually) 45 smoking lounges and 200 smoking stations.