Europe’s largest carrier, Ryanair, has delayed the resumption of its operations in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina until August as a result of the coronavirus Covid-19 pandemic. The carrier will reinstate flights from Niš Constantine the Great Airport on August 2 and plans to keep all four of its destinations from the city at this point. Operations from Banja Luka will restart on August 1, with its new flights to Bergamo in Italy still scheduled to commence at the start of the 2020/2021 winter season on October 26. Ryanair’s subsidiary, Lauda, intends on launching its delayed new service from Vienna to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s second largest city on July 3.
The airports in both Niš and Banja Luka remain closed. Constantine the Great Airport is expected to open within the next month, while all of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s airports will remain closed until at least June 1. Ryanair is Serbia’s second busiest low cost airline by market share behind Wizz Air and Bosnia’s fourth busiest. Elsewhere in the region, the budget carrier plans on resuming some of its flights to Croatia and Montenegro in July, albeit with reduced frequencies. Since the Covid-19 flight restrictions in mid-March, Ryanair has been operating a skeleton daily schedule of thirty flights between Ireland, the UK and Europe. From July, Ryanair will restart flying from most of its eighty bases across the continent. There will be fewer daily/weekly frequencies on trunk routes, as Ryanair works to restore some services on the widest number of routes, rather than operating high frequency services on a small number. Approximately 40% of the airline’s schedule will resume in July.
Ryanair’s CEO, Eddie Wilson, said, “Governments around Europe have implemented a four-month lockdown to limit the spread of the Covid-19 virus. After four months, it is time to get Europe flying again so we can reunite friends and families, allow people to return to work, and restart Europe’s tourism industry, which provides so many millions of jobs”. He added, “Ryanair will work closely with public health authorities to ensure that these flights comply, where possible, with effective measures to limit the spread of Covid-19. As already shown in Asia, temperature checks and face masks/coverings are the most effective way to achieve this on short haul (one hour) within Europe’s single market. Now that Europe’s states are allowing some gradual return to normal life, we expect this will evolve over the coming weeks and months”.
It makes sense considering both markets are outside of the EU and will be affected by travel bans.
ReplyDeleteHas nothing to do with travel bans, it has more to do with slow and gradual resumption of FR flights from July.
DeleteBut you have most flights to Croatia and Montenegro resuming in July.
DeleteVery fragile the situation.
DeleteMontenegro is not in the EU. Hence, as stated, it's nothing to do with travel bans but with scheduled resumptions.
DeleteGood news for Wizz from INI. I'm sure they will start flights as soon as possible.
ReplyDeletePity :(
ReplyDeleteI wonder if Nis will keep its 3 euro charges for airlines after this mess.
ReplyDeleteAirports will have to do even more to attract airlines after this crisis.
DeleteWhy wouldn't it? Signed contracts are not cancelled by coronavirus.
DeleteAlthough do remember that these contracts expire very soon. I believe next year.
DeleteZoka said that no changes will be introuced in the future, the same will stay. Government will not risk creating an even deeper economic crisis.
DeleteI hope so but I wouldn't trust Zoka that much. She keeps claiming day after day that there are currently no flights in Europe which is far from the truth.
DeleteZoka and international aviation don't go together, we all know that. However INI's commercial plans are different. INI is pretty much the only good thing the south has going for it, it would be political suicide to change that, especially with social tensions being this high these days.
DeleteGood thing is that Serbia will open its borders with North Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro and Bosnia in a few days. Also, you will be able to enter the country if you have a valid corona test not older than 72 hours.I am sure more countries will have the same system. Another good thing is that the test here will cost €60 and not €240 like in Austria. I guess that's because Serbia now makes its own tests.
ReplyDeleteand will these countries open their borders to Serbia?
DeleteHow does any of this relate to FR?
DeleteHow doesn't it relate? You think FR flights are only used by people who live within the borders of Serbia? Furthermore it shows that the situation is normalizing more and more with each passing day.
DeleteMontenegro borders will not open on 1st June.
DeleteIf they do not open on 01.06 then MNE will for sure go bankrupt as that would mean no foreign tourists will come before mid-July. These are very dark times.
DeleteWhat % of MNE economy relies on tourism? What % is non-Serbian tourists?
DeleteIt is safe to say that at least Serbs will come by plane or car...
Good news for INI but to be honest I can't wait for Monday so that BEG can finally get some action. This situation is extremely depressing.
ReplyDeleteWell it's not that good news for INI. Flights are delayed until August, there is no date when the airport may reopen....
DeleteWell it's not that good news for INI. Flights are delayed until August, there is no date when the airport may reopen....
DeleteI'd rather have these flights delayed than suspended like so many until now. Ex-YU region was decimated the past few weeks. FR sticking around INI is great news.
Delete+1 last anon.
DeletePoor Banja Luka. It finally catches a break and now this.
ReplyDeleteWe will see if those Vienna - Banja Luka flights go ahead considering that Ryanair is considering Lauda's future all together.
ReplyDeleteIf Lauda folds then all of their flights will simply get Ryanair.
DeleteI hope so but I believe many routes will also be culled.
DeleteRyanair Holdings CEO Michael O’Leary told Reuters about his plans for the near future: cancelling leasing contracts of 30 Laudamotion Airbus A320s to replace them with Boeing 737s after negotiations with Airbus failed. Furthermore, Laudamotion unions have to sign an agreement by 20 May, otherwise, the airline’s main base at Vienna could simply disappear.
DeleteThe Irish airline planned instead to “significantly reduce the scale of the Lauda fleet. We have aircraft that are due to be delivered over the next 12 months and we will cancel almost all of those deliveries,” he added.
DeleteThe future of the Austrian Vienna-based airline Laudamotion has become uncertain for the last few weeks.
Since end April, Michael O’Leary threatened Laudamotion employees based in Vienna to close the base and transfer all slots to Ryanair, dismissing 580 employees, and use the base with Ryanair, Buzz and Malta Air aircraft.
The deadline to find an agreement, including pay cuts and a new labour agreement, is 20 May 2020.
The Austrian union refuses to compromise, and O’Leary simply threatens to close down Laudamotion’s main and home base at Vienna and replace the current Airbus A320 fleet with Boeing 737s.
Wow intersting. When does Ruzla open and when so W6 flights start from there?
ReplyDeleteIn the article it says, "while all of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s airports will remain closed until at least June 1."
DeleteYeah so we don't know if they might extend the ban?
DeleteWe don't but I'm hoping they won't. But the question is will they only allow Sarajevo to open first or will they let all of them.
DeleteBut it makes no sense to only open SJJ due to the country's geography. Also BNX has a sanitary inspectorate in BL if there is a need to do some extra tests.
DeleteFuture for smaller airports certainly looks bleak.
ReplyDeleteIt looks bleak for all airports. Big and small.
Delete"Ryanair will work closely with public health authorities to ensure that these flights comply, where possible"
ReplyDeleteLOL. In other words, don't expect the middle seat blocked if there are passengers on the flight.
It makes no difference anyway.
DeleteWizz said the same.
DeleteSome airlines in Asia had already given up on that.
DeleteNot only does it have no health benefits but it also makes the flights unprofitable.
DeleteUnited as well though they are desperate, they are about to fire 3500 managers and mid level employees.
DeleteExactly, financial aspect is important for LCCs where margins are already thin.
DeleteBlocking middle seat is useless, as it would hurt operators of smaller aircraft in 4 abreast configuration (anything below B737/A320) even more.
DeleteIt's interesting the very different approach Wizz Air and Ryanair have. Wizz Air wants to start flights as early as possible while Ryanair has been quite slow.
ReplyDeleteWizz is selling tickets for some route to INI from next week and the rest in June. But I think only BEG opens next week.
Delete@9.41
DeleteTrue. Wizz has also been announcing new routes and even a new base!
LWO is their newest base!
DeleteI wonder what is the point? Do they see an opportunity or it is a good way of getting some liquidity.
DeleteIn this situation, I'm assuming they are getting all fees waived by the airport.
DeleteBenefits of relying on outbound demand, good job BNX and INI.
ReplyDeleteAt least they will come back, so I would be thankful.
ReplyDeleteThe structure of passengers on these flights may change. There will be fewer ex-yugo workers around Europe.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that they are delaying these flights to August would indicate that the passenger structure was varied and definitely not temporary workers in EU. Most people on these flights were either those going for weekend trips or diaspora which are citizens of the European country they live in.
DeleteI thought Ryanair operated to 5 destinations from Nis? (Berlin, Bratislava, Malta, Milan Bergamo & Stockholm Skavsta)? Or will they stop services to one of those 5?
ReplyDeleteFlights from Stockholm were to be discontinued in March (base closure)
Deletehttps://www.exyuaviation.com/2019/12/ryanair-to-end-stockholm-flights-from.html
Thanks for the clarification!
DeleteSo, no Ryanair in Montenegro in June ?
ReplyDeleteIt says in the article
DeleteThis is a great oportunity for JU to expand in INI!
ReplyDeleteStart routes FR is flying in June and steal the market!
Problem is there are no passengers to 'steal'
DeleteWill they serve TGD?
ReplyDelete" Elsewhere in the region, the budget carrier plans on resuming some of its flights to Croatia and Montenegro in July, albeit with reduced frequencies."
Delete