More investment and new flights planned for B&H
Following the resignation of Nudžeim Rečica as the CEO of B&H Airlines, its Turkish owner plans to make some changes to the way the company is being managed. Turkish Airlines Chairman, Hamdi Topcu, has said his company is planning on making further contributions to the Balkans, particularly in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Speaking at a dinner organised by Turkish Airlines in Sarajevo last week, Topcu said that following the launch of Turkish’s flights between Istanbul and Podgorica, they now fly to every country in the Balkans. “We provide our friends living in the Balkans the opportunity to reach every corner of the world via Istanbul, which is an important transit point. We will continue to invest in the Balkans and Bosnia and Herzegovina in particular”, he said. Topcu emphasised that Turkish Airlines is transferring all its knowledge and expertise to B&H Airlines in order to transform the Bosnian carrier into a leading airline in the region. He said their success has been confirmed by B&H’s increasing number of passengers. The airline carried 78.600 passengers in the first seven months of this year, a 107% jump over the same period last year. Topcu also noted that the airline’s market share rose to 25% this year, up from 14% prior to the Turkish takeover.Turkish is also hoping to make managerial changes to the airline. Amir Jašić has been named the airline’s acting CEO. B&H’s fleet will shrink this September when its Boeing B737-400 is returned to Turkish Airlines as agreed. B&H will continue operating with its new Airbus A319 jet and two ATR72s. The airline is also expected to launch services to Amsterdam this winter in order to provide its passengers with a quick transfer to the United States. A service to Skopje or Podgorica is set to replace the recently terminated flights to Zagreb.
Serious stuff!
ReplyDeleteAnd an excellent results for 2010!
Sounds absolutely fantastic! Does anyone know abouy the new CEO Amir Jasic and his background in business?
ReplyDeleteWell if anyone is serious about changing the culture and fortunes of the place, it had to start at the top. Good on Topcu for speaking frankly and sensibly on the topic.
ReplyDeleteNo mention of the 2nd 319 that was promised, nor when ZAG will return. The airline really must serve the destination in the future, perhaps better-timed flights and a more competitive fare might help their cause.
As for AMS services, there's no shortage of opportunities for the flights to take place - the current jet only doing 2 return flights a day is hardly good utilisation.
Roll on a real timetable and putting the fleet into profitable business!!
New ceo doesn't even have a profile at Linked In, nor when you google it nothing comes out.
ReplyDeleteMy hopes are down :( Just one more un-educated marionette...
It's NOT new CEO, it's ACTING manager
ReplyDeleteAmended
ReplyDelete"transform b&h into a leading airliner" hahaha what a joke. airlines depend upon one thing, what their country has to offer. croatia airlines is successful because of its coastline. jat is successful because of belgrade. what does b&h have to offer to attract people? i'm sorry to be so blunt, but who are we kidding? b&h can never be a leading airline in the region...maybe in bosnia but never in the region. with the likes of croatia, jat, and the olympic takeover, b&h cannot compete. but definitely compliments to turkish for revitalizing the airline.
ReplyDeleteAnonymus- what is it that Slovenia can offer ? but Adria is still leader in Balkan... Y
ReplyDeleteSlovenia has a coast aswell Anonymous! I totally agree with the second Anonymous, what does Bosnia have to offer? If B&H Airlines is to succeed a concerted effort from the government in promoting Bosnia aswell as investing in its tourist capabilities is needed.
ReplyDeleteCroatia Airlines and JAT successful? Are you serious? Successful at manufacturing debt maybe.
ReplyDeleteSlovenia has about 40km of coastline. Not exactly a coastal powerhouse now is it?
Psi laju, karavani prolaze.
ReplyDeleteNe brinite se za dusmane Bosanci.
'Psi laju, karavani prolaze.
ReplyDeleteNe brinite se za dusmane Bosanci.'
Tako je!
I'm pretty sure Bosnia and Herzegovina has a coastline too, 20 km at least? It has the ancient cities of Sarajevo and Mostar, water rafting facilities in Bihac, Europe's FIRST pyramids in Europe in Visoko, world's cleanest water sources (Croatia comes second), Lukomir ethno-village among more, ...hahah, BiH has much much much to offer mate, with 3.5 million visitors anually :]
...and second of all, B&H Airlines can be a leader, just yous wait. A leader already in BiH, but soon...
Na to smo vec navikli, BHA ima povecanje 100+% i vlada mrtva tisina, dok se JAT-u ili CA ovdje aplaudira kada malo operu avion...
ReplyDeleteExcuse me Anonymous nr. 2 and Peter from Sydney, what exactly do you mean by "Bosnia doesnt have anything to offer"?!
ReplyDeleteOkay, Croatia has its coast, but what does Serbia have? Belgrade?!
So does Bosnia. Bosnia has Sarajevo (a pretty popular tourist spot you must admit, ref: lonely planet). Further more, there is Mostar, the coastal city of Neum, MEĐUGORJE, etc etc.