Slovenia’s second airport, Maribor, is up for rent. The Slovenian Ministry for Transport published a call for bids for a 30 year lease of the airport’s infrastructure. The tenant will also become the new manager of the airport which is currently not served by any airline (with exception to the odd charter flight). The deadline for the submission of the bids is September 7, 2010. Maribor Edvard Rusjan Airport is currently leased to the Aerodrom Maribor company, owned by the troubled car seat cover maker Pervent. The new lease holder will be chosen on the basis of several criteria including the amount it is willing to pay for the lease, its business and development plans for the airport and the number of new jobs that will be available thanks to the lease.The bidders for Maribor Airport will have to secure 70.000 Euros in bank guarantees and the ministry reserves the right to reject all offers if it deems them as inappropriate. Several Slovenian and foreign investors have reportedly already expressed interest. The companies mentioned include postal operator Pošta Slovenije, flag carrier Adria Airways, as well as the current lease holder.
Mairbor is Slovenia’s second largest airport, behind Ljubljana but ahead of Portorož. Maribor airport opened to commercial traffic in 1976 and upgraded its runway in 1999. In 2007, the airport reported 1.480 flight operations, 31.936 passengers and over 19 tons of transported cargo. The airport was, for several months, served by the low cost Ryanair, between 2007 and 2008. In 2010, Adria Airways and several other airlines relocated to Maribor during Ljubljana’s runway overhaul.
Close the airport. End of story
ReplyDeleteThis airport is useless
and it looks awful, this old communist architecture..
One thing I will never understand but it is a fact. Whatever the communists have built, looks just awful.....
It is getting a new terminal out of EU money ;)
ReplyDeleteAnd it serves as an alternate for Adria, if fog is predicted in LJU, airport stays open and they go over there.
It s not worth having an airport just for some alternate flight operation days of one small airline. Besides that LJU has CAT III B runway equipment, so the chances for alternate operations are quite little.
ReplyDeleteRyanair has proven it. Operations to MXB are making economically no sense. U can t run an airport with a couple of cargo flights, crew training flights and some charters during summer. It s non sense and the money could be invested in smarter projects...
Slovenia should rather focus further investments into its main gateway Ljubljana and have it expanded and connected better with public transportation, such as for example a rail link.
Adriatic airports are booming at last!
ReplyDeleteLast month the following figures were
hit:
July 2010
---------
Split Airport = 250.497 pax
Dubrovnik Airport = 225.227 pax
Low Cost Carriers played a good role
and even new airliners.
I cannot indestand that in area between Trieste and Bratislava is no low cost hub. MBX has a perfect position 100 km from ZAG, 120 from LJU, 50 from GRZ 120 from KLU, and is located just close to motorway LJU-ZAG-VIE-BUD. In this area living apx. 3.000.000 inhabitants, there are 4 UNIS, more than 100.000 students who want to fly and share ideas. This area need an alternative airport like Treviso near Venice, which will serve low cost airliners. LJU is to expensive for Ryanair
ReplyDelete@anonymous:
ReplyDeleteMaribor is a 40 min drive away from Graz Airport where Ryanair flies to London, besides u have direct links to ZRH,VIE, German Cities as well as regular charters to Palma, Turkey, Greece, Egypt etc
BTS had it s LCC hub, but the airline went bankrupt. VIE and BUD have a wide range of network including low cost carriers. Trieste has Ryanair and Alitalia. Klagenfurt has Austrian, Ryanair, Air Berlin and Germanwings.
Ljubljana has a wide network for such a small airport covering all corners of Europe with cities such as Helsinki, Dublin, Madrid, Athens
Easyjet soon will have destination Nr 2 and 3 out of LJU. Vueling is operating to BCN
Zagreb has Wizzair, soon Easyjet plus several carriers including OS,OU,LH,AF,IB,JKK,TK
I think the area is not covered bad. On the other hand u have to see the economical buying power of the area. With +/- 1000 EUR a month salaries u make not several trips a year
And Jimmy Wang is right, the adriatic airports are doing well. In Summer Split, Zadar, DBV are connected well thru plenty of airlines and destinations from all over in Europe even Bilbao, Valencia, Cork, Lyon, Trondheim, Stavanger etc
so shut down Maribor and let s have a fine airport in LJU
@Jimmy Wang:
ReplyDeleteSplit Airport today Saturday 7AUG had 184 aircraft movements !!
with destinations such as Palermo, Catania, Basel, Bratislava, Aalesund, Birmingham, Marseille, Leipzig, Dresden, Knock, Geneva etc.
that means from 0600 until 2200h every 5 minute either a landing or departure.... not bad for it s size...