The Tuzla cantonal government has refused to sign a contract with Ryanair this week which would have seen the low cost airline commence operations to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s second busiest airport as of next month. The budget carrier, which has been selling tickets for flights from Weeze and Baden Baden to Tuzla, which were scheduled to launch on September 2 and 4 respectively, was to unveil a number of new destinations upon singing the contract with the government this week, among which were initially London Stansted and Memmingen and later Stockholm and Malta. The cantonal government took two months to inform Ryanair it would not sign the deal. The low cost airline has inked a similar agreement with local authorities in Banja Luka, from which it maintains flights.
Ryanair has suspended ticket sales to Tuzla following the cantonal government’s decision. Just two weeks ago, Tuzla Airport said, “Ryanair is planning to fly to Tuzla on a long-term basis and we are in discissions over new destinations. We are undertaking studies to identify the demand for certain destinations. Ryanair is more than welcome at Tuzla Airport in order to cover Wizz Air’s service reductions since it introduced flights from Sarajevo and Banja Luka”. Since then, the Tuzla Canton government has sacked the airport’s General Manager Esed Mujačić.
Tuzla Airport is slowly recovering from the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and its 75-day closure last year. Wizz Air, which boasts a base at the airport, currently serves fourteen destinations. Its CEO, Jozsef Varadi, visited Bosnia and Herzegovina this week and met with Tuzla Airport officials. During the first half of the year, Tuzla Airport welcomed 89.326 travellers, down 25.9% on the same period last year, and down 67% on 2019. “Our goal is to handle a million passengers per year. The airport has both the capacity and opportunities do so. This can only be accomplished once all epidemiological measures are lifted”, Tuzla Airport noted.
Um, maybe now FR will open a base in BNX or launch flights from Sarajevo. The director of Wizza announced the possibility of opening a base on BNX
ReplyDeleteHoping they come to Sarajevo. So much potential there.
DeleteCrazy!
ReplyDeleteI wonder if Wizz slipped an envelope to the canton government.
ReplyDeleteYou said it and I’m sure everyone here reading is thinking the same thing. Funny how for the last couple of months they’re all talking about the opening of FR flights. W6 shows up for a visit and all of a sudden they aren’t signing the agreement.
DeleteEspecially since several routes were in direct competition with Wizz Air.
DeleteWouldn't be surprised. They are very much involved in BiH. They opened a base in Sarajevo and launched Banja Luka just after Ryan announced it would fly to Tuzla. They don't want to give up the market to Ryanair.
DeleteJozsef Varadi, visited Bosnia and Herzegovina this week and met with Tuzla Airport officials
ReplyDelete----
I wonder how thick was that pink envelope he brought with him.
They did BNX a massive favor.
To use Wizz Air's own dictionary
Delete"Wannabe monopolists"
Interesting, same thing happened in Skopje years ago just before Ryanair was to announce flights. Connect the dots.
ReplyDeleteSame scenario
DeleteI really wonder where they see market from Tuzla to Malta..
ReplyDeleteMaybe there are workers from there. Similar like they have flights from Nis because most Serbs living in Malta are from that area.
DeleteThere is no money for RYR from Tuzla!!!
ReplyDeleteVery typical attitude for ex-Yu airports. Unbelievable and making no sense instead of passengers getting benefit from it.
ReplyDeleteWell this isn't the airport's fault. Rather the governments.
DeleteHow pointless. Now Tuzla is left without FR.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the government simply didn't have the money to pay for what Ryanair asked for.
ReplyDeleteOk, why wait then until the last minute to turn them down?
DeleteWhat does Ryanair ask for in these sort of agreements?
DeleteWhat they ask from such airports is : flying in/out and paying nothing but pax taxes, which you can't avoid. Other costs they refuse to pay.
DeleteIn the end the public looses out.
ReplyDeleteI guess Ljubljana can breathe a sigh of relief, TZL might not be busier than them after all this year.
ReplyDeleteTZL will have more passengers this year than LJU.
DeleteThey have about the same number of routes on offer.
DeleteWhat a stupid decision.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing that the government manages is to kick out airlines with this decision. Shame on them
ReplyDeleteWell it's one airline not airlines.
DeleteWhose interest is the Tuzla canton government working for? The passengers or certain airlines?
ReplyDeleteTheir own pockets
DeleteShame
ReplyDeleteWhile I am of course all for LCC flights, who knows what Ryanair suggested in their contract. It could have been unfeasible.
ReplyDeleteI doubt it was much different than what they asked from Banja Luka
DeleteDecapitated chicken would be a better negotatior than anyone in the Balkans. Essentially a very stupid decision as airports are depending on the airlines not airline. And you want to have them more than one to use them as bargaining chips in any negotiation. When you limit yourself to one airline basically you're their bitch and they can do whatever they want beacause they can as you allowed them to.
ReplyDeleteDisaster
ReplyDeleteWelcome to the Balkans FR.
ReplyDeleteFR is far from innocent either.
DeleteThis has Wizz written all over it.
ReplyDeleteRyanair has been expanding nicely at Banja Luka since they started flights and Wizz came afterwards. Both can coexist. This is a senseless decision.
ReplyDeleteConsidering the general manager was mainly responsible for bringing Ryanair, no surprise he has been dismissed.
ReplyDeleteThey didn't block them, they just didn't agree to being blackmailed by FR vultures.
ReplyDeleteWhat happens now with people who booked tickets on these flights?
ReplyDeleteAs my uncle used t0 say, " too many budalas".
ReplyDeleteWizzair is the only scheduled airline at this airport.
ReplyDelete1. Ryan approaches Airport, starts selling tickets
2. Regional government takes two months to decide
3. Airport manager is sacked
4. Wizz CEO pays a visit (pun intended)
5. Decision to turn down Ryan is made public
USA has laws to deal with what appears to have happened here - FCPA and some other acts. Unfortunately Wizzair is not a US company, it is not publicly traded in the US, CEO does not have US citizenship...
So true
DeleteEU has similar laws. Are they going to pursue this?
DeleteMaybe the canton government simply does not have the money to finance Ryanair's wishes.
ReplyDeleteTrust me, if they reviewed the stuff they waste their money on, they would find the finances.
DeleteLet's then hope we see some new Wizz Air routes.
ReplyDeleteThe hungarians know how to "deal" with those goverments in post communist countries.
ReplyDelete