Air Serbia prepares for Chicago service launch

Air Serbia is preparing to add its second destination in the United States in just over a month and a half, on May 17, with the airline to connect Belgrade and Chicago with a nonstop air service exactly 31 years to the day since operations were last maintained. Air Serbia has told EX-YU Aviation News that advanced bookings have been strong, and that the majority are currently made up of point-to-point traffic although a greater share of transfer passengers is expected in the coming period. The Chicago service will be maintained three times per week, using the same flight numbers that were utilised by Air Serbia’s predecessor JAT Yugoslav Airlines. The last scheduled flight between Belgrade and Chicago was carried out on May 17, 1992.

One of the airline's largest sellers in North America, travel agency Axioma Travel, says the new route has generated a lot of interest. Speaking recently to EX-YU Aviation News, Axioma Travel’s President and CEO, Fedja Stepanovich, said, “There is lots of interest as expected. Fares across all airlines are very high for this first full post-Covid summer and Air Serbia’s nonstop flight from Chicago to Belgrade is no exception. Most potential passengers are still on the sidelines hoping for lower fares, which I think will not come this summer. Based on available RBDs [booking class] in the CRS [Central Reservation System], I would say that the Chicago flights are ahead to JFK in terms of booked passengers for summer 2023”. Air Serbia itself said last month that load factors on the Chicago route are stronger than to New York, although it noted that there is significantly less capacity on the Chicago service. “However, we consider it a very positive surprise because it is a newly launched route, while JFK has already matured”, the Serbian carrier noted.

Mr Stepanovich explained that there is interest for the Chicago service outside of the city as well. “We get many customers requesting the new flights via Chicago but wind up booking via JFK because they are cheaper. We have a lot of customers that dislike JFK, but not enough to pay more to connect via Chicago. The Chicago flights operate three times a week and all three have very different departure times. While this may be convenient for passengers living in Chicago and going beyond Belgrade, it does not really help USA beyond Chicago connection traffic at O’Hare”. Commenting on customers booking tickets for travel via Belgrade, Mr Stepnovich said, “As far as beyond Belgrade is concerned, it’s mainly Skopje and Podgorica / Tivat that we see. Sarajevo does not have a connection both ways and Ljubljana and Zagreb passengers have virtually no interest to connect via Belgrade. It’s a shame Sarajevo does not have a connection, as I am sure that would sell well”.

In addition to the three weekly Chicago service, the Serbian carrier will maintain daily flights to New York during the peak summer travel period. Air Serbia is interested in adding more destinations in the United States once it commences operations to Chicago, with Miami being one of the front runners. “We're looking at other destinations in the US. But again, our main strategy is to target cities that have year-round potential. We do not want to increase seasonality, which is already high in our region”, Air Serbia previously said.