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| Former CEO blasts management over poor results |
The former CEO of Montenegro Airlines, Zoran Djurišić, who led the carrier for nineteen years until his dismissal last summer, has said the airline has faced a decline in passenger numbers, revenue and safety standards over the past year. The comments came after the carrier’s current management said financial reports and records under the leadership of the former CEO were falsified to show an improving outlook. According to Mr. Djurišić, the Montenegrin carrier recorded 31.000 fewer passengers in the first half of the year compared to the same period in 2013, while revenue plummeted by 4.2 million euros. The former CEO has accused the current management of trying to cover up its own “ignorance and poor operating results”.
The Montenegrin carrier has been hard hit on its most important market - Serbia. According to available data, Montenegro Airlines handled 106.732 passengers between Podgorica, Tivat and Belgrade in the first half of the year while operating roughly the same amount of flights as in 2013. The result represents a decline of 7.5% compared to the same period last year. While the Montenegrin carrier is still dominant on the abovementioned routes, its counterpart, Air Serbia, has seen its numbers double. According to Belgrade Airport, the Serbian carrier welcomed 98.727 travellers on flights to and from Montenegro during the first six months of the year, an increase of 51.3% on 2013.
Mr. Djurišić questioned the safety of Montenegro Airlines’ jets after the company took eight months to name the head of its safety oversight, which, according to the former CEO, is “unthinkable in aviation and completely unacceptable according to strict aviation guidelines”. The comments come after a Montenegro Airlines Embraer E190 jet, delivered new to the carrier four years ago, had to divert en route from Tivat to Belgrade last week after a number of its fuel pumps failed and its engines began to vibrate. For its part, Montenegro Airlines has refuted Mr. Djurišić’s safety claims saying, “Montenegro Airlines has safety procedures in place and keeps its operations at the highest level under the constant supervision of the civil aviation agency. The company’s safety has never been compromised”.
Both the former and current management teams of Montenegro Airlines have been accused of unprofessional decision making and rampant nepotism. The airline has fallen prey to the country’s governing Democratic Party of Socialists with many of its members, as well as family members of government officials, finding employment at the carrier.
Reading news about Montenegro Airlines reminds me each time I made the right decision to emigrate from the Balkans.
ReplyDeleteFunny, I get the same feeling when I read stories (and comments) about Air Serbia.
DeleteWhy don't you try to read something about Croatia Airlines. You migrate even further
DeleteAnonymous 12:48 PM,
DeleteConsidering average salaries, I think it's quite obvious who should migrate as soon as possible!
disgusting how 2 different factions of the same party are bullying each other at the expense of the airline. If they keep this up passenger numbers will decline even more...
ReplyDeleteDon't get why JU and MGX signed an internline agreement if JU is doing well to Montenegro and is catching up to the competition
ReplyDeleteThat interline was signed by Sasa Vlaisavljeic, now CEO of Belgrade Airport. Its an interline to which Jat/Air Serbia is still recovering from. That is why they now need to 'catch up to the competition' (YM).
DeleteCorrectly me if I am wrong, but nterline was recently signed between Air Serbia and Montenegro, while when Sasa Vlaisavljevic was CEO of former Jat Airways, he signed a short lived code-share agreement between the two. Though it did not last long, it did enormous damage to Jat on Montenegro routes.
DeleteWasn't Montenegro Airlines supposed to be sold this year?
ReplyDeleteFailing fuel pumps is not a minor incident on a 4 year old plane! Many experienced people, especially technicians and maintenance staff have left Montenegro Airlines over the past two years.
ReplyDeleteThe latest incident is something that MGX establishment has to deal with !!
ReplyDeleteDeal with what? This "incident" is just another lie, presented by old establisment of MGX...No such thing, like multi fuel pump failure has ever hapend, on either one of MGX Embraer aircraft...And if you have fuel pump failure,engine will stop, and posibility of high vibrations is very very small
DeleteOh it happened
Deletehttp://avherald.com/h?article=4793ae3f
4O-AOC wasn't in flight schedule for flight YM202,since 12.08.,and article was published on 23.08.,so when did this incident realy took place?4O-AOD is E190,not E195...If you check with APT TGD,you will find, that no flight TIV-BEG was diverted on TGD in recent time...
DeleteZoran Djurisic and Daliborka Pejovic are both terrible CEOs and the Montenegrin market is to small to sustain a functioning airline operating with a profit. For me, it would be best if Croatia, Adria and Montenegro were to merge. They could keep the name Adria with its main base in Zagreb. It would make much more sense. But I doubt politics would ever allow this to happen.
ReplyDeleteWhy would Adria want to merge with two fail airlines? Adria is an airline with bright future and we don't need to ruin it...
DeleteSince Adria is looking at opening bases around Europe they can always do it in Podgorica and Zagreb themselves :D
DeleteDoes anybody know any news about Croatia Airlines and the Ceo Kucko I heard he is on his way out of the company
ReplyDeletePurger said it here but he is still in the company :(
DeleteI don't know what's a bigger joke, Montenegro Airlines or Air Serbia. Can you believe the latter is actually bringing in an official from their Zurich office to work on the establishment of the online check-in even if she has absolutely zero experience in the field! OMG
ReplyDeleteDo you know more about the online check-in project?
DeleteThis should tell you how poor the quality of the talent pool is in HQ if they are bringing in someone frm their field ... It is better to give internal talent an opportunity than bringing in someone from Etihad .... You are obviously someone frm the existing ranks who is useless .... You should leave, go and complain somewhere else ... And no, this person is NOT being brought in to manage the online checkin project. FYI, online checkin is tied to the PSS project ie. reservation system. That is the only way that online checkin can become a reality ie. a new reservation system, which is 12-18mths away
DeleteActually, my cousin got a chance to work with JU through a contract with a third (IT) party and from the stories I heard the Swiss case is nothing new. Half of the people are totally clueless. I am actually worried about the airline, I hope someone pulls their act together there otherwise we are in for a nasty treat soon.
DeleteDon't know if you guys saw, Beirut was once again delayed yesterday and so was Paris this morning. TWO hours!!!
whaaaaaaa? Are you saying that online check-in is a year and a half away?! OMG are these people for real? Even the shittiest airlines around have online check-in. I am failing to see what's so difficult to introduce it. Could we see a total meltdown in Air Serbia? To me it seems like cracks are starting to show.
DeleteMa pustite ih narodе, Er Srbija se igra avijacije. Očigledno je da nemaju pojma no dobro... lepo je dok traje.
DeleteSince you are such an expert, go and ask the 'shitty' airlines you refer to and ask them how long it took to implement a new PSS system, then you might not make such ignorant comments .... Better still, send an email to Amadeus or Sabre and ask them how long it takes to implement a new PSS system that has online checkin as part of the system and you will see what is involved. airberlin - Air Serbia's sister airline - undertook a 2 year evaluation before making a decision around a new PSS system and after making it, the implementation of the new system is 12 mths away .... AirSerbia is a victim of the shitty system that JAT had and a new system is a USD50m 10 year investment that you don't make on a whim ... on top of old 'shitty' aircraft that Air Serbia inherited, the legacy of the 'gift' that the former mgt left the new business is not something that you easily fix. As for 'cracks starting to show', if you call 70% growth in passenger numbers and 82% growth in revenue 'cracks', then the more the better .... You can wish all you want, but Air Serbia is here to stay ...
DeleteOne aircraft does both routes. What I mean by this is that Paris flight has to wait for the Beirut flight to arrive. My fight to Paris was late due to the Beirut flight arriving 30 minutes later
DeleteDa da bas se igraju, zato su uspeli za manje od godinu dana da povecaju broj putnika za 70%, da zamene flotu od 7 raspalih B737, da povecaju broj putnika za cg za 50%. Ako je to igra neka onda nastave tim putem.
DeleteHAHAHAHA
DeleteSlatko se nasmejem kad cujem za CTN.
INN
Its nice to have the online check in feature, but everything with JU takes a while. It took forever to get a new site, we seem to forget the old Yugoslav Airlines website that was in 2002/3 showing timetables for 1999. Then it took a while to have a proper online booking. While with the 'improved' site online booking became easier, with more payment options, i think itll be a while before we will see online check in - unfortunately. Its a minus unfortunately. In the mean time a desk should be kept open for those without check in luggage to compensate this lack on online check in. It costs nothing, and when there isnt someone to check in, they could always use this desk to check in other pax.
DeleteOne thing i see with the delays is that there isnt much efficiency in providing the ac in BEG a quick turn around. Its either not enough people available, lazy people working or a failure in communication between teams. They should be able to deplane, clean, recater, check and reboard in 1 hour considering the ac size (A319/A320), plus taxi time in BEG is rather short (roughly 5 mins). Issues seem to be alot with baggage handling, this is something Air Serbia MUST control, and their dispatchers should be more proactive to ensure that things are working efficiently, the team is proactive, and that targets set (on time departures) are being met.
@INN
opet si tu da siris mrznju. opet nemas konstruktivne komentare.
The problem is that they lack personnel, both Air Serbia and Belgrade airport.
DeleteI remember, a friend of mine who used to work for JU on the check-in told me that in one day 12 people quit! It's crazy.
As for BEG, they had issues with the luggage sorting facility as well as with the loading personnel. It's unfortunate that they have not fixed this in a whole year!
Air Moldova has A321 and online check-in... how about that Air Serbia!?
DeleteThen fly with Air Moldova .... I'm sure they will take you everywhere you need to get to ...
DeleteBut how can I fly on Air Moldova when they can't compete with Air Serbia and its subventions in Belgrade. :(
Deletewhat you urgently need to do before flying on either Air Serbia or Air Moldova, is to learn some English ... subventions is not the word you are after ... I believe it is subsidies ... :)
DeleteAh... I guess it is the old rule, if you are out of arguments correct their vocabulary/grammar. ;)
DeleteThe most important thing is that you understood what I wanted to say.
-1
DeleteActually, you are in desperate need of both ... :)
DeleteJP i JU su najbolje aviokompanije u Ex-Yu . Ove druge su propast CTN je negde u sredini.
ReplyDeleteINN