Belgrade dream run continues

Even more passengers lining up at Belgrade Airport

Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport is continuing to record impressive growth in the new year. Serbia’s main hub welcomed 214.579 passengers, an increase of 20.1% compared to last year’s 178.732. January also saw the end to the decline in the number of flight operations. Since October the airport has been recording a slide in the number of flights being operated to and from Serbia’s capital. Last month, however, Belgrade handled a total of 3.304 flights, an increase of 5.4% compared to last year. The airport’s busiest route is Vienna with 49 weekly flights followed by Podgorica and Frankfurt.

Meanwhile, the airport is continuing construction work on the overhaul of its departures area. Yesterday, Jat Airways moved all of its operations to terminal one. The airline says that all check in procedures will now be carried out at the old terminal due to construction work taking place at the airport. However, some are suggesting that Jat has decided to move because of lower costs at terminal one, which is currently used by Wizz Air and charter airlines. Still the airline insists that it will move back to terminal two after construction work is completed, which it says will take at least a month.

Belgrade Airport was recently left without a customer as Spanair suspended all of its operations. Nevertheless, the airport will hope to materialise on Jat’s summer expansion as well as frequency increases from many airlines. In 2012 the airport hopes to handle more passenger than in its record breaking 1987, when it welcomed 3.3 million travellers.