Sarajevo Airport has issued a public call for airlines to submit their proposals for the opening of a base in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s capital in 2023, in return for incentives. Interested carriers have 45 days to apply, after which talks will begin between Sarajevo Airport and the selected airlines. The airport launched a similar tender in 2020, which was won by Wizz Air. It was the only one to have applied. Wizz Air closed its Sarajevo base after just a year and a half earlier this month. However, unlike two years ago, the new call is not limited to low cost carriers and neither does it require for the airline to base two aircraft in the city.
Under the terms issued by Sarajevo Airport, interested carriers must open their base in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s capital next year in order to qualify for the incentives. The airline that offers the most destinations, frequencies and estimates handling the most passengers will be favoured in the selection process. Furthermore, the carrier that plans to increase traffic from the airport in 2024 and 2025 will have an advantage. Unlike two years ago, this time around the incentives are limited only to the number of passengers carried, however, the airline will qualify for the subsidies regardless of how many travellers it handles. The more departing passengers it welcomes on board its aircraft from Sarajevo, the greater the financial support, however, the exact amount of funds have not been made public.
Sarajevo Airport was made aware that Wizz Air could shut its base after it started suspending a number of routes from the city for the 2022/23 winter season back in August. It had previously described the opening of Wizz Air’s base as being of “strategic interest for Bosnia and Herzegovina”. The airline generated a significant portion of the airport’s traffic, while almost all of the carrier’s routes were unserved by others from the city, significantly improving its connectivity. Wizz Air’s departure has resulted in Sarajevo Airport losing all flights to Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Italy, as well as year-round operations to Sweden, Denmark and Norway.
Sarajevo Airport had previously noted it was in discussions with Ryanair over launching flights from the city. Ryanair has expanded its operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina this year. It entered the market in 2018 with services to Banja Luka from which it now serves eight cities. Furthermore, the carrier has launched operations to Tuzla earlier this month, with services from Vienna, Stockholm and Memmingen. Ryanair’s Director of Route Development, Ray Kelliher, recently said, “We look forward to growing in Bosnia and Herzegovina over the coming years and being able to announce more new and exciting routes for next summer”.
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This could be a chance for Croatia Airlines to apply since it is not just for low cost airlines. Years ago they wanted to open a base in Sarajevo.
ReplyDeleteOU should get preference. They are a full fare airline that will connect SJJ with European capitals and it was the first airline to start flights there after the war.
DeleteSarajevo is missing so many vital links that this would be welcomed.
DeleteI don't think Croatia Airlines will bother with tenders.
DeleteThey should base a Dash 8 in SJJ.
DeleteI doubt it very much. They are losing market share in their own country, they are losing money, they did not open any base in any of announced countries during the best aviation years...
DeleteThe way OU is run, them reacting to anything is as realistic as expecting them to launch flights to the Moon. Just the past couple of years they have failed to react to the bankruptcy of JP and the FR base in ZAG, let alone to any other changes in the region. Their market share in Croatia continues to drop while they are no where near recovery from the pandemic.
Delete@09,14
The majority of their operations is made up of PSO routes and flights to hubs of LH and friends. A good amount of LHR slots were sold to show profit, CPH (hub to their Star Alliance partner SAS) operates with the Dash just like ZRH (LX). Expecting OU, in their current form, to connect SJJ to European capitals is as realistic as expecting to see a unicorn.
OU is too busy signing deals with a music production company to focus on this.
DeleteLook i might be naive, but if slovenia was to establish a new airline by some miracle this is a certain way of ensuring good results.
ReplyDeleteBut ofc it won't come to that
Why do they bother with these tenders? If they already made an agreement with Ryanair, which everyone thinks they did, why the sham tenders? They did that with Wizz Air last time too. Everyone knew they had already made an agreement with Wizz Air.
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteLCCs can't be trusted as we already saw in Sarajevo. They should not go in bed with them again.
DeleteSo I assume that this airline would start flights next summer season?
ReplyDeleteYes
DeleteHope to see Ryanair in Sarajevo.
ReplyDeleteMe too. Good airline unlike Wizzair. They are in a terrible state of cancelling and reshuffling so many routes. They completely lost in Salzburg for instance. Let's see how they perform in Rome, because they are still not very well known for Western Europeans compared to Ryanair, Volotea which is a sneaky and smart little airline, Vueling especially and so on.
DeleteWhich destinations could Ryanair launch?
DeleteTake your pick.
DeleteThis has Ryanair written all over it.
ReplyDeleteThe last sentence from Ryanair executive says it all.
Delete@9.14 not really. We will see but Ryanair usually requires a whole lot more subsidies than the one that is being offered here.
Deleteplease make a smart and rational decision.
ReplyDeleteI'm really interested to see how many airlines will apply this time around.
ReplyDeleteOnly FR most likely.
DeleteOh wow, BiH is acting real fast. Didn't see that one coming. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteMore like the airport...
DeleteWatch and learn Fraport!
ReplyDeleteSarajevo Airport deserves a serious airline to open up a base. Well done on this initiative.
ReplyDeleteThis is the smartest decision the management could make.
DeleteFantastic news from SJJ
ReplyDeleteThey need some. This will be a disastrous winter.
DeleteA golden opportunity for OU to feed mother Lufthansa!
ReplyDeleteAgree. If they started flights from Sarajevo, they would just launch Munich like they did from Pula, Rijeka, Osijek, Brac and anywhere they fly from.
DeleteLet's hope they will be more successful this time.
ReplyDeleteTime to break up the Star Alliance cartel at Sarajevo Airport.
ReplyDeleteIf it wasn't for Star Alliance, there would be very few flights from Sarajevo this winter.
DeleteThere is a lot of potential from SJJ.
ReplyDelete... and a lot of unserved routes.
DeleteDoes it? Wizz Air didn't seem to think so.
DeleteSarajevo really went through a renaissance with Wizz Air. I hope the same will happen this time.
ReplyDeleteThey could boom again with any LCC.
DeleteLet's wait and see who it is. If its an LCC then I would agree. We will see fast paced growth. If it some Balkan legacy forget it.
DeleteI'm not so sure there will be much interest. 2 years ago they were giving much more incentives unlike this time.
ReplyDeleteGreat news for Sarajevo. It really needs a major LCC.
ReplyDeleteAll the best of luck to SJJ. Definitely an underrated destination.
ReplyDeleteRyanair will definitely come
ReplyDeleteHow does Sarajevo finance this?
ReplyDeleteFantastic news!
ReplyDeleteThere are no limitations on what type of aircraft should be based in Sarajevo. Last time around it had to be a plane with at least 150 seats.
ReplyDeleteOpens up the opportunity for more airlines to apply.
DeleteCan't wait to see who applies.
ReplyDeleteWhen will the result be announced?
ReplyDeleteEarly next year most likely.
DeleteFantastic news, well done Sarajevo! And that was a fast reaction, just two weeks after Wizz stopped flying. Ljubljana should learn from them!
ReplyDeleteEveryone reacted quickly to problems. Montenegro created a new airline, Serbia rebranded and invested lots of money in their own when it was on its deathbed, Skopje launched subsidy scheme when MAT went bankrupt, Sarajevo offered subsidies when Wizz Air left. Only Ljubljana and Slovenia did nothing.
DeleteMy money is on Ryan Air
ReplyDeleteGood for SJJ.
ReplyDeleteLet's hope for a success story this time.
ReplyDeleteIf Wizz didn't make it, not sure others will be able to either.
DeleteIt definitely won't be any ex-Yu national carrier.
ReplyDeleteThank goodness.
DeleteGreat news for SJJ. I think this airline is likely to be Ryanair. Whoever comes is beneficial.
ReplyDeleteIt took Covid to bring Sarajevo Airport to its senses.
ReplyDeleteNo, it just took a more professional management to be named and that's what happened.
DeleteWould be best if it's easyJet. Then we have Wizz as main airline in Tuzla, Ryan as main airline in Banja Luka and easy in Sarajevo :D
ReplyDeleteThat would be cool
DeleteThat very well may be happening.
DeleteWho's gonna win?
ReplyDeleteThere is probably only going to be one airline applying.
DeleteEurowings
ReplyDeleteNo thanks
DeleteThey are even worse than Wizz.
DeleteThey suspended their flights to Sarajevo during the winter, so I very much doubt it.
DeleteThey seem to be doing well with their base in Pristina.
DeleteBecause it is not them doing anything there other than providing an aircraft. It's kind of like offering a franchise. They have a plane there and they allow ticket sales through their site but the route decisions and staffing is done by the family tour operators selling the tickets.
DeleteVery little subsidies are being offered this time around and only based on the number of passengers handled. I don't think this will be enough to attract Ryanair.
ReplyDeleteGood point
DeleteIf Ryanair does win, how will it affect their ops in Banja Luka and Tuzla?
ReplyDeleteNo. Why would it?
DeleteWell when Wizz started Sarajevo base operations they suspended some routes from Tuzla.
DeleteI think that had more to do with their internal issues than with Sarajevo base opening.
DeleteAccording to some Bosnian aviation sources, it seems like EasyJet is interested as well in opening a base in Sarajevo?! That would be fantastic!
ReplyDeleteThat would be great!
DeleteFingers crossed.
DeleteIt would be nice, but I'm not so sure. They have no flights to Bosnia whatsoever.
Delete^ So? They will enter the market at some point. This way they can get paid for it.
DeleteIt won't be easyJet! They are about to announce a huge loss for 2022 and are cutting a lot of flights from next summer's schedule. There are rumours IAG may make a takeover bid for them in the spring,!
DeleteI know it's not gonna be them, but Finnair has been open for new things lately. With their refreshed strategy to fly more to North America it would be nice to see more of them in the region, potentially competing with LOT.
ReplyDeleteI don't think this region is on their radar at all. I think there would be a greater chance of seeing LOT do something like this.
DeleteWould be interesting to know the amount of money being offered.
ReplyDeleteThe tender is probably fixed so they don't want to reveal the money as it has already been agreed upon, likely Ryanair. They fixed the tender with Wizz Air too.
DeleteIt will be an LCC for sure. No chance of any legacy carriers going after this. Too complicated.
ReplyDeleteI agree. It will be Ryanair or easyjet.
DeleteI heard that airBaltic are interested as they have spare aircraft and not enough routes in their current markets.
ReplyDeleteairBaltic interested in Sarajevo? No chance.
DeleteIf SJJ is missing so many routes in Europe and Wizz Air could not make it in Sarajevo, you really got to wonder how much potential the market really has. Some people here writing how SJJ has huge potential but all the results so far point otherwise.
ReplyDeleteWizz je itekako imao dobru popunjenost. Razlog sto su otisli je na drugoj strani.
DeleteWizz Air je prevezao skoro pola miliona putnika u Sarajevu ove godine
DeleteWizz alone had more than 400,000 passengers in Sarajevo this year, and Sarajevo will jump over 3-4 airports from the region passenger wise this year. Is that supposed to be a bad thing, and a sign of “no market” as you say?!
DeleteHope there is interest from many airlines.
ReplyDeleteIsn't there some foreign investment now in SJJ?
ReplyDeleteThere is. Why do you ask?
DeleteSarajevo is not viable as an aircraft base with continuous operation, period. As long as the airport equipment (ILS) can't cope with the frequent low visibility in winter season it just can't work. And yes, it could be upgraded, only a question of money and willingness. This money would be better to spend on that other than lure airlines to open a base just to close them as soon as they realise that it can't work.
ReplyDeletePostoji niz aerodroma sa slicnim uslovima zimi…niti jedan nije zatvorio zbog toga. Ali, da u tehniku za lose vremenske uslove treba uloziti, to je cinjenica.
DeleteAny airport with CAT III ILS is safe for basically the whole year. Ljubljana, Zagreb, Belgrade has no such problems. They are now joined by Pristina which realized what is needed for a successful year-round airport. Even Skopje did some steps to decrease its weather minima. Tuzla and Sarajevo remain problematic (along with Ohrid and Nis but with significantly lower traffic). Easier to justify bling investments like terminals, control towers, access roads etc but if an aircraft can't land all those worth nothing.
DeleteBut wasnt Sarajevo working on it in the last few years? I think last year and this year Sarajevo had only one or two days the whole year that were problematic due to fog, thats not a disaster.
Delete