LOT Polish Airlines will suspend its last remaining service in the region - to Zagreb - next month, marking its complete withdrawal from the former Yugoslavia until March 2021 at the earliest. The carrier will temporarily cancel flights between Warsaw and the Croatian capital from January 13 until March 1, when four weekly flights will be restored. The decision comes amid a continuing decline in demand, resulting from travel restrictions, as well steep fall in transfer traffic, which LOT relies on. Flights to Dubrovnik, which LOT maintained on a year-round basis in 2019, have been suspended for several months and are not due to resume until the start of the 2021 summer season on March 28.
Poland has temporarily banned flights to Serbia, Macedonia and Montenegro, preventing LOT from operating flights. Services to Belgrade were maintained since October but were discontinued in late November due to flight restrictions. The service is now scheduled to resume four times per week from March 1. Services to the Macedonian and Montenegrin capitals have not operated since mid-March. Flights to Podgorica are set to be restored on March 28, with six weekly rotations, while services to Skopje will resume a day later, on March 29, with five weekly flights. Over 60% of LOT’s passengers on these routes connected through Warsaw to other destinations, mostly the United States and Canada. Despite plans to restore flights between Warsaw and Ljubljana, the Polish carrier has continuously delayed the resumption date and has now scheduled its return for March 2, after which it plans to run four weekly rotations between the two capital cities.
LOT, like other airlines across the world, has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. European regulators cleared the Polish government’s plan yesterday to provide its flag carrier with around 650 million euros in financial support. The support consists of a subsidised loan worth 400 million euros and a capital injection of around 250 million euros. LOT resumed international flights on July 1, much later than most of its other major European competitors. The significant drop in travel demand continues to deteriorate the airline’s financial situation, which is currently facing the risk of default and insolvency. The aid measures intend to restore LOT’s equity and liquidity position.
Great news for JU especially for JFK flights.
ReplyDeleteWell, New York introduced mandatory quarantine for everyone arriving from international flights.
DeleteI don't understand all those comments "great news for JU". If you want that way then lets all airlines leave and let JU all alone serves the airport. Will it be satisfying for you??!!!
Delete^ It's just kids. Best ignore them.
DeleteQuarante in New York is not enforced.
DeleteSo anyone who supports and cheers for an ex yu airline over a non ex yu is a child?
DeleteYou are cheering for everyone else to disappear. So yes, only a child could think like that.
DeleteI do not understand either.... but also do not understand "This is a bad news for JU" which is even more common here... what a nonsense...
DeleteCivil aviation is a business and certain companies can profit from the demise or weakness of others. There is no emotion and no charity. If in a certain market LO fails then JU can get more passengers, earn more money, pay more taxes in Serbia, BEG gets more passengers so they earn more from taxes but also thanks to more passengers more shops can open at BEG bringing more revenue and so on.
DeleteSo there is nothing childish here. Hopefully now you understand better.
No BEG won't get any of those things because it will just loose flights to Warsaw and an airline while people who didn't want to fly with Air Serbia and chose another airline will again choose another airline. Now you know.
DeleteSo you know who people will fly with? What else does your crystal ball say?
DeleteI know they didn't choose Air Serbia for a reason, that you will no longer have flights to Warsaw, and that if they left the market it will allow everyone to increase fares because there is one competitor less.
DeleteBy the same logic ZAG airport is childish when they chase away LCCs to make great news for OU.
DeleteYou probably missed the article on here how JU had the best LF in October in JFK, just ahead of KLM. I guess numbers tell us that more people chose to fly with them than they don't. ;)
DeleteNo h8 plz
I hope they come back on these routes as planned.
ReplyDeleteThey will come back in March or later. But they will come back.
DeleteHow many flights per week did LOT have to each city in ex yu before covid?
ReplyDeleteLjubljana - 7 weekly (was supposed to become 8 weekly in summer 2021)
DeletePodgorica - 6 weekly
Skopje - 6 weekly
Belgrade - 11 weekly (was supposed to become 12 in summer 2021)
I can't remember what was Zagreb's frequnecy. I think it was double daily or almost double daily.
And this year they were actually supposed to introduce 4 new routes :/
DeleteBudapest - Belgrade
Rzeszow - Zadar
Budapest - Dubrovnik
Warsaw - Rijeka
Well they introduced the new routes to Croatia. Plus several other new routes to Croatia through their adhoc expansion although I don't think those will come back.
DeleteAh the precovid world... how I miss you.
DeleteZadar, Dubrovnik, Split, Tirana are already marketed for S21.
DeleteBut these operate every summer...
DeleteYes they launched 13 new routes to Croatia this summer but I don't think any are coming back in the summer. Let's see.
DeleteOhrid 3 weekly
DeleteDid Ohrid even launch this summer?
DeleteConsidering they can't carry almost anyone to US and Canada, and people from Montenegro, Serbia and Macedonia can't enter Warsaw, it makes sense
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteDoubt LJU will resume in March.
ReplyDeletecould you please explain your comment?
DeleteThey put it off every time. I don't see demand for Ljubljana recovering by March.
DeleteIt will depend a lot on the epidemiological situation in the world at the time.
Delete650 million in aid! wow
ReplyDeleteWell the majority of it is a loan that will have to be paid back.
DeleteWe'll see about that.
DeleteIt will take some time to recover LO.
ReplyDeleteLike for everyone else.
DeleteI don't understand why they are ending ZAG since Croatian passport holders can travel freely through the EU.
ReplyDeleteBecause there is no demand for travel anywhere in the world.
DeleteAnywhere in the world? Nonsense.
DeleteYes, there is very little demand anywhere in the world. Ask any airline.
DeleteChina excluded.
DeleteEven with covid there are some markets out there that have demand. Anon 09.17 said there is no demand anywhere in the world which is obviously wrong.
DeleteVery little. And you certainly won't find any demand in Europe.
DeleteOuch!
ReplyDeleteWhat about other nearby markets? Romania, Bulgaria?
ReplyDeleteThey are not affected. Flights are still running.
DeleteWhat is happening with their base in Budapest? Are they operating anything other than Warsaw from there?
DeleteSeul, Wroclaw, temporarily New York.
DeleteI don't get who they are flying to Seoul. Foreigners can't enter, and no Koreans are flying internationally.
DeleteI hope they come back. They had very good fares.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure they will.
DeleteLove LOT. A pity
ReplyDeleteThey said themselves a earlier this year (there was an article here) that their ex-Yu network is based on their transfer strategy. So it's no surprise these routes have been suspended.
ReplyDeleteDon't understand why people would not look for alternatives. Their service and on board product on the 787s which they use to North America leave a lot to be desired.
DeleteTheir B787 is better than many others actually.
DeleteI love those comments from people that never actually fly, but have very strong preference towards one airline flying to North America;)
DeleteAnd I don't need to say which airline was meant by anon 9 28 as an only viable alternative;)
DeleteWishing all airlines a better 2021!
Anon 9 43.
If you think I was thinking of JU then no, but kudos for your false and stereotypical assumption. I don't think it can be considered an alternative with a single route to North America.
DeleteI was talking about Lufthansa, Austrian and Air France. @anon 9.40. It is not the experience I had with them. Especially when it comes to service and cabin crew which were some of the coldest and unfriendly I encountered in the last few years.
And you refer us to service and cabin crew on LH and OS. I have no more comments. This isn't a serious discussion with an experienced traveller.
DeleteWell there is TK which is light years ahead of LO.
DeleteLOT to me is one of the worst European legacies, together with BA and AF. I much prefer KLM, LH, OS, LX and mostly SU. Their service / standard is very low, and treatment is like cattle in Eco. I'd wish they would stop flying entirely. They really wouldn't be missed.
DeleteWhat a shame
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if anyone can even enter Slovenia at the moment so not surprised about there being no flights to LJU.
ReplyDeleteRight now they are many restrictions in place to enter Slovenia. Not the right time for flying here unless you have an emergency.
DeleteIt was same situation even when borders were opened so that's a lousy excuse.
DeleteThere is very little demand and it's all currently covered by Lufthansa. On top of that Slovenians can't enter US or Canada.
DeleteAt yesterday's correspondence session, representatives of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia determined that from Friday 25 December, a negative test for the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which must not be older than 24 hours, is required to enter Slovenia without a quarantine.
Delete@anon 00:10
Deleteand how exactly you know how much demands there is? So what you are saying that there is no passengers who's not travelling because there is no flights? Or that no one from Slovenia travels from other airports? Only because we have 1 flight per day to FRA? Don't be ridiculous..
I read a few months ago that the Visegrand group has suggested for LOT to become the national airline of Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. Not sure if this is still the plan. Prague Airport also confirmed LOT will open a base there. Perhaps they will start some more ex-Yu routes?
ReplyDeleteBut what about CSA?
DeleteThese 4 are planing to establish joint national carrier with LOT being the leader in that project.
Delete@9.52 it is privately owned.
DeleteWhy can't flag carrier be privately owned?
DeleteWorks for UK and Spain for example.
It can but what I wanted to say is that the government has no obligation towards them.
DeleteNo surprise. Things are probably not going to get better until the middle of next year.
ReplyDeleteBest case scnario
DeleteHave they completely cancelled plans to fly BUD-BEG?
ReplyDeleteWill DBV-BUD be back?
DeleteIt doesn't look like it. It's not scheduled for next summer at the moment.
DeleteSeems like corona has brought about the total collapse of LO. Only goes to show how fake and artificial their growth was in the past.
ReplyDeleteBy that account, every airline's growth was fake.
DeleteNot all airlines are collapsing in such a way.
DeleteWhat is happening with the new airport in Poland that is supposed to replace WAW and become LOT's new hub? Is that still going ahead?
ReplyDeleteIt is going ahead.
DeleteAmong others in October the government approved their 2020-2023 (preparation phase) budget of 2,9 bln euro. In December they selected ICN airport as their strategic advisor.
Interesting. So when is this airport supposed to be completed?
DeleteAnd any idea what happens with WAW afterwards?
DeleteAlthough there is no official decision yet, WAW will be closed. Therefore major investments that were planned at WAW to expand its capacity have been stopped.
DeleteOfficial date for the new airport is 2027, but that is absolutely unrealistic.
I see, thank you. I hear a lot of people complain about the congestion at WAW (pre covid).
DeleteThis problem was solved by covid;)
DeleteOn a more serious note, in 2022 a third airport for Warsaw will be completed: RDO. It is supposed to take over remaining charters and some lccs from WAW. Congestion risk will be in this way mitigated irrespective when the new Solidarity Airport opens.
It's really called Solidarity Airport?
DeleteThe good thing is they plan to resume all routes.
ReplyDeleteWe will see
DeleteI also wouldn't be so certain. With collapse in global demand for travel, some markets will no longer be of interest.
DeleteInteresting that most of their passengers are transfers. Is there no point to point demand to Warsaw?
ReplyDeleteWell it is indicative that none of the ex-Yu airlines fly there.
DeleteOr Wizz Air for that matter.
DeleteKrakow or Warszaw can be an easy win for Wizz from both SKP&BEG but i guess they are concentrating on West Europe for both markets
DeleteDunno really anyone who would think of Warsaw as a city trip destination, can't imagine that city has much leisure-P2P.
DeleteAs for business pax , well, Poland has a large no. of bigger cities and the company hq's are also in big numbers not (mainly) in Warsaw, instead they are often in places like Krakow, Lodz, Poznan, Wroclaw, Katowice, and Gdansk - all cities that Lot connects via WAW to the whole world (except Lodz).
Really lots of transfer traffic via WAW... not that much P2P...
I would think Warsaw is certainly worth a visit. At least for a city break.
DeleteWhat did you like about Warsaw? I have been maybe to 30 cities all over Europe, and 29 were better, much more worth and scenic from a tourist's pov than WAW.
DeleteThat's a shame
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised Zagreb is being suspended. I mean they operated it constantly since July.
ReplyDelete