Foreign carriers see mixed results in Belgrade

The busiest foreign carriers operating flights to Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport have recorded mixed results during the first half of the year as they face increased competition. Wizz Air, which boasts a base in Belgrade, continued to recover after its numbers fell sharply in 2014 following the suspension of several routes and a public spat with the airport over fees. The low cost carrier handled 199.539 passengers bound to and from Belgrade during the first half of the year, an increase of 3.4% compared to the same period in 2015. Wizz's passenger share at the airport grew to 9.4%, which is still below its record 12.5% share registered during the first half of 2013. Over the first two quarters of this year, the airline increased its frequencies on several routes during the winter and introduced flights to Baden-Baden, marking its first new route from the Serbian capital in two years.

Star Alliance members Lufthansa and Swiss International Air Lines saw their numbers dip during the first half of the year, with the latter registering a sharp fall in figures. The German national carrier welcomed 131.334 travellers on board its aircraft to and from the Serbian capital, a decrease of 3.4% on last year. Furthermore, Swiss handled almost 10.000 fewer passengers, recording a 10.2% decline in numbers. Unlike last year, the carrier no longer runs flights between Geneva and Belgrade as it retreats from the former Yugoslav market. It recently announced plans to suspend all operations to Zagreb and Sarajevo, and pulled out of Ljubljana in January. Montenegro Airlines saw its passenger numbers improve slightly during the first half of the year, handling 114.953 passengers, up 1.6%. The figure was achieved despite an overall fall in the number of operated flights.

Busiest foreign carriers at Belgrade Airport H1

Airline	PAX	Change (%)
Wizz Air	199.539	▲ 3.4
Lufthansa	131.334	▼ 3.4
Montenegro Airlines	114.953	▲ 1.6
Swiss Int. Air Lines	82.687	▼ 10.2

Lufthansa remains Belgrade Airport's second busiest foreign carrier behind Wizz Air with a passenger share of 6.2%, followed by Montenegro Airlines at 5.4% and Swiss with a share of 3.9% of all passengers. Overall, foreign carriers handled 1.000.400 travellers on flights to and from the Serbian capital during the January - June period, up 1% compared to 2015. They now account for 47.4% of all passengers passing through the airport, an increase of 1%, having been surpassed by Air Serbia which now handles 52.6% of all travellers using the airport. During the first half of the year, Montenegro Airlines operated the most flights to and from the city out of all the foreign carriers, followed by Lufthansa, Wizz Air, Austrian, Turkish Airlines and Aeroflot.

Most frequent foreign carriers at Belgrade Airport H1

Airline	Flight ops.	Change (%)
Montenegro Airlines	1.452	▼ 5.0
Lufthansa	1.316	▼ 5.1
Wizz Air	1.278	▲ 0.2
Austrian Airlines	904	▼ 0.7
Turkish Airlines	799	0
Aeroflot	730	▲ 1.1
Swiss Int. Air Lines	602	▼ 14.7
Alitalia	406	▼ 16.7
TAROM	330	▲ 11.5