All smiles for Adria at Priština

Priština has quickly become a success for Slovenia’s Adria Airways, a claim reinforced by the strong results the airline has seen on the recently launched services from the city to Verona in Italy. In the first three weeks since the route was launched on January 28, the airline carried approximately 2.500 passengers and recorded an average cabin occupancy index of 81.6%. "I am very pleased that we have introduced this service and I expect it to satisfy both Kosovo and Italian citizens", Adria CEO Klemen Boštjančič said at a recent launch party for the service.

Adria is quickly becoming one of the major players at Priština Airport. In 2011 the Slovenian national carrier welcomed some 140.000 passengers on board flights to and from Priština, making it the second busiest airline at the airport after Edelweiss. This summer, besides Verona, Adria will be operating flights to Frankfurt, Ljubljana and Munich as well.

Adria is the only former Yugoslav airline to have a secondary base outside of its borders. There have also been other attempts by national carriers in the region to open bases in neighbouring countries. Montenegro Airlines has attempted several times to open a base in Belgrade since 2006 but so far hasn’t received the green light from local authorities to do so. In 2010, Jat Airways attempted to open a base at Skopje Airport following the collapse of MAT Macedonian Airlines. However, its subsidiary Aeromak was denied a license by the Macedonian Civil Aviation Directorate.

Tomorrow you will be able to review summer changes Adria, Montenegro Airlines and B&H Airlines will be making to their summer timetables. Special thanks to the Sierra5 portal for contributing to the above news story.

Interest from low cost airlines to fly to Sarajevo Airport

Sarajevo could soon see low cost flights from London, Rome and Dusseldorf as the Bosnian government relaxes its conditions towards no frills airlines. The government currently requires low cost airlines to pay a levy of ten euros per passenger in order to operate flights to the country. Until recently, the levy amounted to fifteen euros but the state government gave up on its share of the takings while the Federation government is expected to follow suit. According to the Al Jazeera Balkans network, interest has been shown for flights to commence from London, Rome, Dusseldorf and a city in Sweden to Sarajevo this summer. Recently, the low cost Austrian airline Niki, owned by Air Berlin, said it was evaluating the Bosnian market.

New airlines would be more than welcomed by airports in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In February, the country’s busiest airport, Sarajevo, suffered a 21% passenger decrease by handling only 26.278 passengers. During the month the airport was affected by bad weather but also B&H Airlines’ route suspensions. However, the full brunt of the carrier’s woes is to be felt at the airport in March. Currently, B&H operates a single daily flight to Istanbul with an ATR72. During February, Banja Luka Airport welcomed 424 passengers and Mostar 318. Tuzla did not manage to attract any passengers last month.

Sarajevo Airport is served by two low cost airlines - Germanwings and Norwegian Air Shuttle. Norwegian operates flights on a seasonal basis and will be resuming services from Oslo and Stockholm to the Bosnian capital this summer. On top of its all year round service from Cologne, Germanwings will resume seasonal flights from Stuttgart to Sarajevo this summer as well.

More passengers and new control tower for Belgrade

The Serbia and Montenegro Air Traffic Services Agency has announced that it will finance the construction of a new control tower at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport. Construction will begin next year and is set to be completed by 2014. According to the agency, the land on which the tower will be built has been selected and work on the project design is now in progress. The new tower will stand at 52 metres tall. The current air control tower, being used at Serbia’s busiest airport, was built back in 1962. In 2010 the multi million euro Air Control Centre was opened within the airport complex.

Meanwhile, Belgrade Airport continued to report growth in 2012. In February the airport welcomed 173.606 passengers, an increase of 6.6% compared to the same month last year when it handled 162.813 passengers. The airport was served almost by the same amount of flights - 2.988 compared to last year’s 3.010. In the first two months of the year, Nikola Tesla Airport welcomed 388.185 passengers through its doors, an increase of 13.7% compared to the same period last year.

This summer, Belgrade will see new Croatia Airlines flights to Split which replace Dubrovnik from last year, new flights from Copenhagen by Norwegian Air Shuttle, a 23% increase in flights from Jat Airways while Air One and Qatar Airways will also launch flights to the Serbian capital this summer season.

Weaker February at Zagreb Airport

Zagreb Airport has seen a third consecutive month of declining passenger numbers. In February, Croatia’s busiest airport handled 117.725 passengers, a decrease of 6.6% compared to the same month last year when it welcomed 125.978 passengers through its doors. The number of flights operating to and from the airport significantly decreased, by 9.4%. However, Zagreb, like other airports in the former Yugoslavia wasn’t immune to the snowstorms and bad weather conditions. Many domestic flights were cancelled in February due to the closure of the country’s coastal airports. Furthermore, other carriers such as Turkish Airlines were also forced to cancel flights due to snow in Istanbul.

Last year, Zagreb Airport handled a record number of passengers. However, figures started to decline in December 2011. In the first two months of 2012, the airport welcomed 5.9% less passengers then the same period last year. Other airports in the country also experienced a decline in traffic, details which will be published at the end of the month.

Meanwhile, Croatia Airlines also saw a setback this week. It has been revealed that one of the airline’s Dash 8 jets was dropped while being lifted during maintenance. Consequently, the aircraft has been damaged as it sustained a puncture on the fuselage. It occurred during the March 8 industrial action at the airline which saw mechanics walk off the job as well.

Snow hits Jat’s passenger numbers

Jat Airways has seen its passenger numbers stumble for the first time in over a year as snow storms and numerous cancellations take their toll. This February Jat handled 62.289 passengers, down 9% on the same month last year. The number of flights operated in February 2012 fell 10%. During the month, numerous flights were cancelled to one of Jat’s busiest markets - Montenegro. As a result, passenger numbers fell 33% on services to Podgorica and Tivat. On Euro Mediterranean flights passenger numbers decreased 5%, while Jat handled 37% more passengers on charter flights compared to February 2011.

So far this year, Jat Airways has welcomed 137.197 passengers onboard, the same as last year. The average cabin load factor for the two months stood at 63%, which is six points ahead of the same period last year. Despite February 2012 having an extra day, as it is a leap year, the three busiest airlines of the former Yugoslavia saw their passenger figures decline. Adria Airways saw its numbers slump due to a decrease in the number of operated flights while Croatia Airlines and Jat were forced to cancel flights due to bad weather.

Meanwhile, Jat has announced that it will resume its seasonal services to Girona in Spain this summer. Flights will launch on June 5, twice per week, with a Boeing 737-300. The aircraft will have an all economy class layout with 126 seats. As a result, this summer, besides Girona, Jat resumes flights to Malta, Dubrovnik, Pula, Split, Ohrid and launches London Gatwick.

Month	PAX	Change (%)	Average load factor (%)
JAN	74.908	▲ 8	66
FEB	62.289	▼9	63

MAT to launch fourteen destinations from Skopje

The charter airline MAT Airways will resume operations from Skopje for the first time since August 2011. The airline, owned by the Serbian tour operator Kon Tiki, will launch fourteen destinations from May 1. The carrier will first inaugurate two weekly flights to Antwerp in Belgium. Just over a month later, on June 18, Mat Airways will launch flights to Ancona (3 times per week), Milan-Bergamo (3 p/w), Bologna (3 p/w), Rome (4 p/w), Trieste (4 p/w), Bratislava (4 p/w), Basel (5 p/w), Dusseldorf (3 p/w), Stuttgart (2 p/w), Hamburg (2 p/w), Berlin (2 p/w) Malmo (2 p/w) and Istanbul-Sabiha Gokcen (2 p/w).

The airline owns a sole Boeing 737-500 but is also likely to use Sky Wings International’s Boeing 737-300, which has been sitting at Skopje Airport for months. MAT operated flights last summer but suspended operations due to poor loads in August. The new flights can be booked via the airline’s website. Prices start from 45 euros. MAT could also be interested in applying for subsidies to be offered by the Macedonian government for low cost airlines.

If the flights get off to a successful start it will be a major coup for Skopje Airport which has already seen strong growth this year. In February, Macedonia’s two commercial airports (Skopje and Ohrid) handled 49.031 passengers, an increase of 22% compared to the same month last year. It was accompanied by a 4% increase in the number of operated flights to and from the airports. Recently, Skopje Alexander the Great Airport finally received a public transport bus link to the city centre, allowing passengers easier access to the country’s main airport.

B&H cancels all flights

B&H Airlines has cancelled all flights as its ATR72 leaves for Germany. Officially the aircraft has joined the other B&H Airlines ATR72 for maintenance. The airline’s Airbus A319 is grounded in Istanbul. As a result, the Bosnian carrier has cancelled all operations until further notice.

Passenger numbers continue to tumble at Adria

Passenger numbers have continued to decline at Adria Airways in February. The Slovenian national carrier handled 58.013 passengers. Compared to the same month last year the airline’s figures have slumped by 5.1%. Back in February 2011 the carrier handled 60.946 passengers. However, it should be noted that this February had an extra day as 2012 is a leap year. Still, there are some encouraging signs as Adria welcomed more passenger in February than it did in January. Since February had two days less than the previous month and is usually the slowest month of the year, the trend is encouraging. In 2011, there were 5.000 passengers less in February than that of January, while this year there were 2.000 passengers more than in the first month of 2012.

The slump in numbers can also be attributed to the suspension of a number of routes. Still, Adria operated several special flights including those from Torino to Belgrade since the airline has signed a contract to carry Fiat employees from Italy to the Zastava-Fiat car manufacturer in Serbia. The airline will hope its new flights to London Luton and seasonal flights to Barcelona, Manchester and Lulea in Sweden will boost passenger numbers while continuing to implement cost cutting measures.

Meanwhile, the crisis hit Adria Airways Tehnika, which has been separated from its parent company Adria Airways, could be reintegrated into the national carrier as the Slovenian government looks for a solution to the aircraft maintenance company’s problems. Tehnika has managed to come to an agreement with aircraft leasing company ILFC for the return of Spanair jets which found themselves in Ljubljana as the Spanish airline collapsed. As has been previously mentioned, Spanair was Adria Tehnika’s second biggest customer.

New hope for B&H Airlines

Members of Turkish Airlines’ management flew into Sarajevo yesterday for talks with the Bosnian government over a deepening row regarding B&H Airlines, three weeks ahead of the 2012 summer season. The government, which is B&H’s majority stake holder, is unimpressed with the way the Turks have managed the carrier and are requesting for Turkish Airlines to adhere to its takeover contract. Local media report that Turkish Airlines has not fulfilled many of its obligations which it signed up to back in 2008 when it took a 49% stake in the carrier. The Bosnian government is further angered that it has had to pump in 3.4 million euros into the national airline on an annual basis, despite Turkish’s presence.

Recently, in retaliation, Turkish Airlines took back its Airbus A319, which was operated by B&H and flights to Amsterdam were suspended with little warning. The return of the A319 to Sarajevo was discussed in yesterday’s meeting and progress is said to have been made. In February, B&H Airlines saw passenger numbers stumble 40%. It not only battled with constant flight cancellations as a result of its spat with Turkish Airlines but also saw extreme weather conditions.

Only last week, the Bosnian government approved a 1.3 million euro cash injection to cover B&H’s operational costs. Today, the carrier will only operate one return flight to Istanbul with other services cancelled. Furthermore, one its ATRs is undergoing maintenance leaving the carrier with a single ATR72. Yesterday’s meeting between Turkish Airlines and the Bosnian government is said to be going in the right direction, bringing hope to employees and passengers that the situation can be resolved.

Dubrovnik underperforms as other airports grow

In the first month of 2012, the airports in Zagreb and Dubrovnik saw passenger numbers slide after a record breaking 2011. Other airports in Croatia managed to record passenger growth.

Croatia’s busiest airport Zagreb welcomed 131.068 passengers, a decrease in of 5.6% compared to the same month last year. Zagreb’s slow start was followed by a significant fall in the number of transit passengers passing through the airport. Dubrovnik, which was Croatia’s second busiest airport in 2011 and the fifth busiest in the former Yugoslavia, saw an even bigger decline than its counterpart in Zagreb. Dubrovnik handled 17.843 compared to 21.288 passengers in 2011, a decrease of almost 20%.

Other airports in Croatia had better luck with Split, Pula, Zadar and Osijek all recording a passenger growth. Split’s numbers were better than those of Dubrovnik as the airport welcomed 24.678 passengers through its doors. Pula Airport will be content with its January performance as it recorded a passenger increase of 24.2%. Both Rijeka and Brač airports saw triple digit growth but together handled only 47 passengers.

Below you can review the performance of Croatia’s airports in January 2012. Overall, Croatian airports handled 176.929 passengers, a decrease of 5.6% compared to January 2011. The statistics have been provided by the Croatian Bureau of Statistics.

Airport	Passengers JAN 2012	Passengers JAN 2011	Change (%)
Zagreb	131.068	138.370	▼ 5.6
Dubrovnik	17.843	21.288	▼ 19.3
Split	24.678	24.428	▲ 1.1
Zadar	2.216	1.848	▲ 16.6
Pula	995	754	▲ 24.2
Rijeka	31	11	▲ 64.5
Osijek	56	35	▲ 60.0
Brač	16	1	▲ 1500.0
Mali Lošinj	26	72	▼ 63.9

Government approves Montenegro Airlines privatisation

The Montenegrin government decided yesterday that Montenegro Airlines will be privatised during 2012. It follows a difficult year for the national carrier in 2011. Montenegrin Prime Minister Igor Lukšić said that the airline will be offered to investors through a public tender. Montenegro Airlines has become a costly business to keep running after the government agreed to provide 400.000 Euros to the carrier each month to cover operational costs and write off the airline’s debt to Podgorica and Tivat airports. In order to cover the debt owed to the Serbia and Montenegro Air Services Agency the government has offered them ownership of the Park Hotel in Bijela on the Montenegrin coast. Earlier in 2011, the government wrote off a further 3.2 million Euros in debt and ordered the country’s two international airports to lower its fees to the national carrier. Recently, there has been discontent amongst pilots unhappy with late wages. Unlike its regional rivals, the global economic gloom did not have an effect on Montenegro Airlines in either 2008 or 2009.

The Montenegrin carrier has faced sliding passenger numbers, handling under 600.000 passengers last year, although is reported to have had strong growth in January 2012. This summer the national airline will introduce flights to London from both Podgorica and Tivat and has announced plans to purchase another Embraer jet.

It will be the second time the government has attempted to privatise Montenegro Airlines. In 2010, it unsuccessfully tried to sell a 30% share in the airline. Although El Al Israel Airlines, Etihad Airways and Arkia Israel Airlines all purchased the tender documentation, none of them made an offer. The CEO of the airline, Zoran Djurišić, is firmly against the sale. Late last year he told the media, “The government knows my stance regarding the privatisation which is why I have been completely excluded from the process”. He added that privatising the airline will have long term negative effects on the country. Instead, Djurišić says the government should cover the airline’s losses and pressure Montenegro’s largest petroleum company, Jugopetrol, to reduce its unreasonably high costs.

Strong start for Skopje and Ohrid

Skopje and Ohrid airports have continued their impressive growth in 2012. The two Macedonian airports handled 64.394 passengers in January, an increase of 24%. The figures were aided by 923 flights operated to and from the airports, thus representing an increase of 17% compared to the same month last year. The two airports experienced particularly strong growth during the holiday New Year season. Skopje Alexander the Great Airport handled 5.458 passengers in the first two days of 2012, representing an increase of 140% on last year. Similarly, Ohrid Airport recorded a boost of 86% during the two days by handling 643 passengers.

In 2011, Skopje Airport welcomed 759.928 passengers, while Ohrid saw 74.345 passengers pass through its doors. As a result, Macedonia recorded the eighth biggest passenger increase by country in Europe in 2011. The only country in the former Yugoslavia ahead of Macedonia was Serbia, by one place, while others fell behind. Estonia saw the biggest increase in passengers in 2011, while Slovenia and Slovakia were the rare ones to detract. Macedonia was ahead of much larger markets such as the United Kingdom, Germany, Turkey, Spain and France.

Confirmed new arrivals to Skopje Airport this summer will be B&H Airlines from Sarajevo and Jetairfly from Brussels. Ohrid will also enjoy Jetairfly flights, while Jat Airways resumes its seasonal service from Belgrade. Sky Express, which operated flights from Moscow to Ohrid last year, has since gone bankrupt.

Passenger numbers slide at Zagreb Airport

Zagreb Airport has recorded a second consecutive month of declining passenger numbers, on the back of a weaker performance by its main customer Croatia Airlines. While the passenger slump in December 2011 was only slight, standing at 0.2%, the gap widened in January when Zagreb handled 131.068 passengers. Therefore, the airport saw a decrease of 5.3% compared to last January when it welcomed 138.370 passengers. The number of flights operating to and from the Croatian capital increased marginally, by 0.4%, in the first month of 2012.

Other airports in Croatia also underperformed in January with numbers significantly down at Dubrovnik, which handled only 17.843 passengers, a decrease of 16.2% compared to last year making it its worst January performance since 2008. Full January results for all of Croatia’s airports will be published by the end of the month.

Zagreb Airport will hope to overturn its results soon. This summer, Croatia’s busiest airport will enjoy new seasonal summer services and charters by Croatia Airlines. The airport will also see Lufthansa inaugurate flights from Berlin while Qatar Airways introduces daily flights from Doha via Budapest.

Passenger numbers up in 2012

Jat Airways has had a solid start to the year, by handling 74.908 passengers in January, an increase of 8% compared to the same month last year. This is despite a drop in the number of operated flights by 7%. The average cabin load factor stood at 66% a big 10 point increase on last year.

Despite persistent media speculation regarding Jat’s future and increased competition, results show passengers are returning to the Serbian carrier. In January, on flights heading to and from Podgorica and Tivat, Jat recorded a 23% passenger increase. On Euro Mediterranean services numbers were up 5% while charter flights saw a 410% passenger increase, although it should be noted that the number of operated charters increased by 100%. Last year they were mostly inexistent during the winter months.

Jat ended 2011 as the second busiest airline in the former Yugoslavia by welcoming 1.219.703 passengers. Its revenues were also significantly up although its actual profits and losses will be known once the official financial results are published. A total of nine promotional ticket sales last year could hit the airline’s finances despite them leading to passenger growth.

Passenger boost for Sarajevo Airport

Sarajevo Airport has started the year off on a positive note by handling 33.063 passengers, an increase of 9.1% compared to the same month last year when it saw 30.292 passengers pass through its doors. The number of operated flights to and from the Bosnian capital stayed almost the same with 371 operations compared to 376 in January last year. B&H Airlines remains the dominant carrier at the airport with a 33% share of all scheduled arrivals and departures followed by Croatia Airlines and Austrian with a 17.5% share each.

Numbers at Bosnia and Herzegovina’s main airport could suffer in February due to many cancellations and diversions throughout the month, which are still ongoing, due to thick fog and record snow fall. This summer the airport will benefit from new services to be introduced by B&H Airlines as well as the resumption of seasonal summer flights from Oslo and Stockholm (to be operated by Norwegian Air Shuttle) and Stuttgart (by Germanwings).

Proposed future look of Sarajevo Airport terminal

This year there are plans for the much awaited expansion of Sarajevo Airport to begin. The head of the airport, Ivica Veličan, said last year that the 32 million Euro project should commence in 2012 with 7.000 square metres to added to the terminal building, a new apron to be built and existing jetways to be overhauled. “The expansion of the terminal building will allow better quality service for our passengers and will improve our country’s image”, Veličan said.

Passenger slump at Adria

Adria Airways has continued to see a large decline in passenger numbers in 2012. In the first month of the year the Slovenian carrier handled only 56.214 passengers, its lowest January result in years. The airline’s numbers were down 14.3% on January 2011 when it welcomed 65.635 passengers. However, it should be noted that Adria has significantly decreased the number of flight operations compared to last year. In December, Adria saw similar results as the airline recorded a passenger slump 14.5% accompanied by a 18% reduction in flights and a load factor of only 57%.

In an attempt to offset the worrying figures Adria is offering special fares for stranded Malev passengers, following the collapse of the Hungarian national carrier. Passengers holding a Malev ticket have been offered special prices for Adria’s direct scheduled flights. The price for one flight coupon in economy class is 60 Euros, except for Moscow (200 Euros) Brussels (80), Frankfurt to Priština (120) and Munich to Priština (100). The offer is valid for travel until February 29. The Centre for Aviation believes that Adria, along with Austrian and Croatia Airlines, will absorb a portion of the transit traffic previously carried by Malev.

Meanwhile, Adria Airways Tehnika, which is struggling following the collapse of Spanair has said that staff has agreed to 20% reduction in wages. Spanair was Tehnika’s second largest client after Adria itself. On a brighter note, Adria Tehnika’s new hanger at Ljubljana Airport is nearing completion.

Adria Tehnika counts its losses after Spanair collapse

The owner of Adria Airways Tehnika has announced that the aircraft maintenance company is in serious trouble following the bankruptcy of Spainair, its second largest client. Adria Airways Tehnika, the maintenance division of national carrier Adria Airways, was separated from the airline in January last year and sold to the government owned asset management firm PDP. It owns the company jointly with Ljubljana Airport which took a share in the company in return to writing off Adria’s debt to the airport. Adria Airways Tehnika has already reported poor financial results, which are set to be aggravated by the loss of its second biggest customer after Adria Airways. Spainair accounted for 25 to 30% of the company's revenues.

Spanair ceased operations last week in a surprise move after takeover talks with Qatar Airways failed and the Catalan government, which owns the majority of the Barcelona based airline, refused to come to its aid once again. On Monday the airline filed for bankruptcy. Currently, two of Spanair’s Airbus A320s are in Ljubljana. They were being serviced when the airline announced it was suspending operations. The maintenance work done on the jets has not been paid for. Adria Airways Tehnika is now negotiating with the owner of the Spanair aircraft, ILFC Leasing, to resolve the matter.

Spanair’s bankruptcy will prove as another blow to the already struggling maintenance company. Two years ago Adria Airways Tehnika posted a loss of five million Euros while the loss amounted to one million in 2011. However, this does not include millions of Euros owed by Adria Airways to its maintenance division. As a result, Adria Airways Tehnika plans to sue it main customer. Furthermore, its employees have been receiving only 90% of their pay recently and have not received social security payments. The management of Adria Airways Tehnika has put forward a restructuring plan, the details of which remain unknown.

Photo © Sierra5.net

Farewell Malev

Hungarian national carrier, Malev, has ceased all operations, ending with it services to Belgrade, Zagreb, Priština, Skopje, Sarajevo and Podgorica.

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.

Good start for Macedonian airports

Skopje Airport has started the year off by posting strong passenger growth in the first days of 2012. The airport managed to handle 5.458 passengers in the first two days of the year, up 140% compared to the same period last year. Despite not having any scheduled flights over the winter, Ohrid Airport managed 643 passengers, up from 345 last year, representing an increase of 86%. Combined, Macedonia’s two airports welcomed 6.101 passengers, up from 2.613 a year ago.

The 2011 end of year result for Skopje Alexander the Great Airport is expected to be released soon and it will be a question of whether the airport has finally managed to top 800.000 passengers. With strong results recorded throughout the year, it is expected that it could well do so. In 2011, Macedonia’s main hub handled 716.000 passengers. With no scheduled airline based in the city, airport authorities will look to attract as many carriers as possible this coming summer. State subsidies for low cost airlines, which are set to kick in later on in the year, will help towards achieving such a goal.

In the first week of 2012, the airport also published its redesigned web page to correspond with its new terminal opened in September last year.