Strong July for Belgrade

Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport, terminal 2

Belgrade Nikola Tesla has managed to break previous records and handle over 300.000 passengers in July, an increase not only compared to last year but also to the most successful year so far – 2008. Belgrade handled 352.992 passengers last month compared to 308.710 in 2009 and 343.204 in 2008, the “Blic” newspaper reports. So far this year, the airport welcomed 1.464.580 passengers. The high numbers are in part due to a big increase in the number of airlines serving the airport. Spanair, which operates flights to Madrid and Barcelona, is reporting extremely high passenger figures on the Belgrade route while the low cost Wizz Air is the most successful debutant at the airport this year. Alitalia and Jat Airways are reporting big passenger increases on services to Italy and strong numbers are also being registered on flights to Oslo, Stockholm and Riga.

In December last year, the European Union abolished visa requirements for Serbian citizens entering the 27 member state union, which has contributed to the passenger rise. Furthermore, from June, citizens of the European Union only need their identification cards to enter Serbia, rather than passports.