Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport has so far recorded its busiest year on record. Following an extremely strong first three months of the year, growth slowed during the second quarter as a result of Wizz Air’s wide-scale capacity cuts, which had an impact on almost all routes operated by the budget carrier, data from the statistical office of the European Union, Eurostat, show. The drop in passenger numbers on Wizz Air flights occurred during the second quarter, when the airline decreased capacity and cut frequencies, to the point that its performance during the first three months of 2024 was significantly better on many routes then the proceeding three, and, in most cases, its best on record at Belgrade Airport.
Istanbul was Belgrade Airport’s busiest destination during the first half of the year, with a combined total of 300.574 passengers between the Serbian capital and the Turkish city’s two airports. Services to and from Istanbul’s main gateway accounted for 225.795 passengers, slightly down on last year as Air Serbia reduced its number of flights, while the remaining 74.779 travellers flew to and from Sabiha Gocken Airport. Air Serbia saw fewer passengers on its New York service after it operated fewer flights to the Big Apple compared to the same period last year.
The table below, provided by Eurostat, indicates passenger numbers for the majority of Belgrade’s scheduled destinations, although not all. The figures in the table account for just over 80% of Belgrade’s total passenger numbers in the first half of 2024.
Belgrade Airport's passenger performance for select routes, H1 2024
Interesting that there were no flights to Barcelona until mid 2019 and now it is in top 10 busiest routes.
ReplyDeleteImagine how much money airlines lost while ignoring it for years...
DeleteNo need to imagine, they lost no money by no flying. Probably they lost a chance to earn some money, but that's another thing.
DeleteAnon@09:49 If you are in money making business, not making money is losing money.
DeleteThe figures for MAD are not bad either considering that it was 2 weekly for most of the first half of the year.
DeleteThey didn't lose the money, it was probably just earned by some other airline, most probably LH group members.
DeleteDidn't Vueling operate flights in 2019?
DeleteYes they did. They resumed flights in April 2019 and ended them in October. They were unable to compete against JU.
DeleteBoth JU and W6 lost money by unsuccessfully launching some Varna or Fridrihschafen instead of Barcelona. It's called oportunity cost.
DeleteAnd the one who lost most with these BCN flights from Belgrade is Timisoara airport (partly Budapest too).
DeleteHow come New York lost passengers? I thought it was performing really well, judging by the plan to make some days double daily
ReplyDeleteThere were 5 flights less to New York in Q1 2024 compared to Q1 2023.
DeleteBut only five flights less is not equal to 11% drop. LF must be worse also. I thought JFK is very successful route
DeleteCapacity was decreased by 13.2% in H1 2024 compared to H1 2023.
DeleteIt may be because of less transfer pax, HiSky started OTP-JFK, Russians are using TK more often etc. That being said, the product must be updated asap, onboard service and experience on Pupin is unacceptable...
Delete"But only five flights less is not equal to 11% drop."
DeleteSo obviously you are wrong but I like how matter of fact you make that statement as if you actually knew.
@9.38 Have you actually thought that it may be because Air Serbia actually launched Chicago? Or maybe that British Airways launched flights to Belgrade? Or that is operated LESS flights than last year? No, of course not. It must be HiSky lol.
DeleteIt's sad how some people latch onto something in hope of spinning everything into a negative light out of the entire table. But it's ok, we are used to it. I think I know the screaming headline on a tabloid site led by aviation 'expert' in the next few days.
DeleteDid ORD really affect JFK numbers? The route started in May and codeshare with jetblue was in effect from H2 anyway
DeleteSo what if the route started in May? It means that from January - June of this year people had an alternative.
DeleteWith the capacity reduced by 13.2% and numbers dropping 11.6% that means that the LF has actually went up, not down...
DeleteThat was the argument on why would ORD launch in May affect JFK numbers from January-May.
DeleteIt will effect because that option DID NOT EXIST last year. I don't know how you can't get it through your head.
DeleteVery few passengers connected to ORD through JFK before the introduction of the new service. Which makes sense, because if you already have to connect, it's much easier and more straightforward to do it through a European hub than a US hub. You clear immigration & customs on arrival, no need to recheck the bag etc.
DeleteWe don't know that. It's like the person at 9.32 who claimed that 5 flights less does not equal 11% drop in capacity but it turned out it equals an even larger drop.
DeleteWhat I am really curious to hear about is numbers for ODR.
DeleteThere are some rumors that the route was promising a lot but it is not performing as expected.
There are reasons for that of course: extremely high ticket prices, often (almost) regular delyas, Pupun's condition, poor customer support service...
Can anyone elaborate a bit this route please?
I have a feeling that many many other routs got articles and elaborats but nothing for this one even though it is one of rare long houl onset and very important for Serbian diaspora and Air Serbia.
Thank you in advance.
Don't think there are many long-haul aircraft in Europe in nearly as bad shape as Pupin. It's a shame.
DeleteYou must have flown on most long-haul planes in Europe when you know what share they are in?
Delete^shape
DeleteWow Istanbul has 300,000+ passengers and that's just the first half of the year.
ReplyDeleteYesterday I was at the airport and there were three buses waiting for Turks who arrived on TK for a medical conference in Belgrade. I think strong O&D demand plays a key role which all three airlines like as it boosts their yields.
DeleteAdd to that transfers on both ends and you have such a strong result. Will be interesting to see if down the road Istanbul becomes the first city to reach 1.000.000 passengers from BEG.
It could if Pegasus was allowed to add frequencies. I'm sure they would be flying10 weekly by now. Especially since they have completely different clientele compared to TK/JU.
DeleteIndeed, I think it's a real shame they are not allowed to have at least daily flights.
DeleteGood numbers. Hope the rise won't stop.
ReplyDeleteBelgrade has done the maths.
What maths has it done?
DeleteChicago is not on the list, would be interesting to see how it performs
ReplyDeleteThe growth rate compared to 2019 is crazy. Most destinations have triple digit growth.
ReplyDelete6 is not "most"
Delete^ Are you seriously saying the growth compared to 2019 is not impressive? The airport added over 1.5 million passengers vs 2019.
Delete"Most destinations have triple digit growth." 6 destinations is not most. Learn how to read.
Delete^ cry
DeleteBEG gonna hit 10 mil next year.
ReplyDeleteTrue dat.
DeleteNice to see Lisbon doing so well.
ReplyDeleteIt's a pity what an impact Wizz Air's engine issues have had this year. It goes to show that they have a big role in BEG and perhaps more should be done to find an LCC alternative.
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteAdmin, do you have Niš numbers?
ReplyDeleteThere are figures for some routes. It will be published in the coming days.
DeleteWhy is the list not in alphabetical order?
ReplyDeleteIt's in the order of most passengers to least. What's your problem?
DeleteIt's when someone does not know what to complain about but needs to complain
DeleteLarnaca exploded
ReplyDeleteIf Wizz Air had capacity this year, it would have even better numbers. Next year if they have capacity I can see WizzAir flying daily to LCA in summer
DeleteHow did Copenhagen increase so much?
ReplyDeleteWizz Air started flights last September.
DeleteTrue. Forgot about that. Thanks
DeleteThessaloniki is a nice surprise. It has great growth compared to last year and 2019 even though there is no new airline on the route. Wonder where that growth came from.
ReplyDeleteIs there maybe demand for Aegean to start SKG-BEG? It would be nice.
DeleteMaybe with the ATR but I think Air Serbia covers this market quite well. If Serbia is missing a Greek link then I would say it's a summer seasonal HER-INI.
DeleteMykonos too!
DeleteI said it before and I will say it again. Airlines flying into BEG are lucky since demand remained strong despite the economic slowdown in the West.
ReplyDeleteThis is the main reason why BEG numbers did not drop despite all the cuts by both JU and W6.
Last week I flew with Lufthansa for the first time since March 2020. Service was, of course, inferior to what was offered in the past but everything else considerably improved.
We flew BEG-FRA-BCN and back. All flights were on time with the A320 from BEG and A319 to BEG being full to the last seat. Going there we had a 2 hour connection while on the way back it was 55 minutes. BCN is selected as one of the destinations where they are testing their free service so we got free drinks on both legs. It was a nice change. IFE was offered on all flights except BCN-FRA since the A320neo does not have it.
BCN was an absolute disaster and the ceiling was leaking from the rain.
Almost all of our clients flew with LH and they arrived last night ahead of schedule. All of their luggage arrived despite a 55 minute connection. All those who flew on Air Serbia experienced a heavy delay and they reached BEG at 00.30 instead of 23.10. Their flight to BCN was also delayed by close to an hour.
All in all, I hope Air Serbia manages to improve their on time performance as delays are still common. If airlines around Europe can do it then they have no excuses. They need to fix their underlying problems otherwise others will profit from BEG's strong performance.
Interesting. What sort of IFE is offered on these flights? Good to hear about the complimentary drinks and full loads.
DeleteAs far as IFE goes, you connect to it via wifi after take off. They have a moving map with all the relevant information, they have free journals, podcasts, airport and destination information etc.
DeleteYou can purchase wifi access but messaging is free of charge (WhatsApp, Viber...).
I was also impressed with their wifi service. It worked really well and was fast.
DeleteIs there really a slowdown in the West? Any airport reported passenger number decrease? I didn't follow it, just reading about the economic slowdown but don't see pax figures to support it. Do FRA, MUC, LHR, AMS, JFK have less pax than previous year or which airport in the West suffers from this economic decline (which is undisputed, just trying to figure its effect on aviation)?
DeleteFrom what I remember Germany is still below their 2019 numbers. I think FRA also slipped in terms of busiest airports in Europe. In the region I think BUD is also below their pre-covid numbers.
DeleteMany are at pre-Covid levels, but it can't be assigned only to economic decline. And vice versa, IST is on fire although Turkish economy is not in decent shape, to put it mildly.
DeleteParis Charles de Gaulle (-9,0% on 2019), Amsterdam (-7,7%), Frankfurt (-14,2%), and London Gatwick (-9,2%)
DeleteWow: flydubai has more pax than Qatar and flydubai pax together from ZAG
ReplyDeletehttps://www.exyuaviation.com/2024/09/ryanair-routes-see-strong-zagreb-growth.html?m=1
What about OPO numbers?
ReplyDeleteBTW ?very pleasantly surprised by the numbers for Lisbon !
DeleteI recently flew OPO... Both flights were full, with 2-3 vacant seats. LF more than 90%
DeleteI expected BUD higher on the list considering the frequencies, but I guess JU has break-even on that route. It's great that they positioned themselves on that market.
ReplyDeleteMoscow is lower than 2019, interesting. On one hand, Air Serbia now flies to more cities in Russia, on the other hand, all other competition is gone and demand should be higher.
ReplyDeletewow I can't believe you are surprised there are less passengers than in 2019. In 2019 Russians could travel freely to most countries and Aeroflot flew to Belgrade 3 times per day on top of Air Serbia flights. Also, Air Serbia used to fly transfers to Russia and there was actual demand from Serbia to Russia by Serbian citizens which no longer exists. Sometimes I really wonder if people here are actual aviation enthusiasts and follow anything that happens on the market.
DeleteWell we tend to forget that there is a war happening and overall demand for travelling in Russia has decreased, visas banned, entry denied etc.
DeleteCapacity levels on the route are down 45% compared to the same period in 2019.
DeleteWell, Aeroflot used to operate triple daily A321 and then there was Nordwind as well. Also, Air Serbia used to have flights to ROV and KRR.
DeleteI think SU launched LED-BEG just before covid hit or just before the war in Ukraine.
@ 10:23 this statement "Air Serbia used to fly transfers to Russia and there was actual demand from Serbia to Russia by Serbian citizens which no longer exists" is completely wrong! Strong demand still exists and every flight is quite full.
DeleteThe average cabin load factor on the Belgrade - Moscow - Belgrade service over the six-month period was a high 92%.
DeleteAlways good to see BEG growing, but JU really need to get their house in order.
ReplyDeleteLast Friday they had another meltdown in operations, and cancelled the afternoon flight to/from CDG without bothering to notify me or AF - I found out only at the CDG check-in desk after arriving at the airport. Most passengers had been rebooked to Saturday services; luckily, I always buy my tickets on the AF codeshare, and AF managed to rebook me through VIE and get me to BEG the same evening (huge props to them on how they handle IRROPS btw).
For my October trip to BEG I chose to connect through AMS on KL, because I just don't want to play the guessing game with JU anymore; I've been to BEG three times this year, and experienced a major delay (2+ hrs) twice and a cancellation once. The benefit of a direct flight just doesn't outweigh the risk associated with a JU booking anymore. I hope winter will be better for them.
They had a lot of delays yesterday too. I believe a plane got stuck in LHR last Friday. Of course that's not an excuse, and especially them not notifying you about the cancellation.
DeleteNow the question we should be asking is what happened with spare planes Marek talked about? Shouldn't they reduce delays?
DeleteTheir operations are better than last year but there is still a lot more room for improvement.
There was some talk that AF changed codeshare features with JU, similar to KLM (no codeshare from BEG to AMS and CDG but there is to third destinations) and these issues could be the reason for the change. If this stays their usual way of doing business, JU is jeopardizing its image not just with consumers but with codeshare partners too.
DeleteAir Serbia has promised some things. Spare fleet, improved operations, delivery of third A330. If they could just stop talking about it before delivering on it.
Delete@anon 12:18
DeleteI don't think AF will remove the codeshare for CDG-BEG P2P as they (unlike KL) don't have their own operations to BEG. But it will be interesting to follow the evolution of this partnership.
Almost every JU flight is delayed, most readers here accuse ATC constraints but in fact it is JU scheduling that is way too ambitious and causing delays. Example YU-APO supposed to land from TIV (if on time but it is not) at 16:10 while the flight planned for Moscow on YU-APO is scheduled at 17:00. Guess what? there is no chance it will leave on time and with less than 90 minutes delay. And that is happening almost daily for JU flights. Schedule time on ground in BEG is 50 min while it is a mission impossible to turn around the aircraft in less than 90 min. in home base. JAT was more efficient in that matter than ASL today is.
DeleteI think there's no need to compare (at least BEG) with 2019, as we're way past those numbers.
ReplyDeleteWhat could be useful is to include scheduled capacity in this table, that way we could get more insight into performance of each of the route.
Most experts here claim how BEG is a disaster, JU is a disaster and everything is a disaster in Serbian aviation. Why wouldn't the numbers be compared to 2019 when many European airports have not reached those numbers? It's great that we even get these numbers. Very few sites give statistics like this.
DeleteBecause there's no need.
DeleteAs I said, we are way past 2019 figures, so I don't see any value in comparison with that period, just because rest of the bunch does it.
Many European airports have not reached pre-Covid levels, so for them it does make sense, but for us it doesn't.
I said in my previous post what would give more value to the table above, without making it too busy.
I think from next year no one will speak of 2019 anymore. This year has been quite normal so numbers achieved during this period will be far more relevant than those from back in 2019.
DeleteBut Nemjee, that’s exactly my point.
Delete2023 was record year for BEG, unlike for many airports, so it’s enough to compare it with that year.
In some other context, for example when we include other airports in the story, it could be useful to include 2019 as well, just to see how the airports recovered from C19.
But for BEG standalone, it’s not necessary.
How about saying thank you that someone provided you with passenger numbers? Complaining just for the sake of complaining.
Delete+1
DeleteI am saying thank you by visiting this portal and giving my share in traffic, based on which it generates revenue.
DeleteYou should really think before hitting publish button.
What is interesting to me is that BEG is growing, but we don’t have many foregin carriers. It would be really nice if Aegean upgraded BEG service, and also see some more airlines in BEG such as Iberia, TAP Portugal, ITA and more routes with EasyJet.
ReplyDeleteThis winter Aegean boosted BEG to 5 weekly while next summer they plan daily flights. They have been growing quietly over the years.
DeleteAF, Ryan, SAS, Finnair, Vueling...
DeleteVueling flew to BEG and failed. They failed because of seasonal flights at 2AM which were always delayed. Thankfully Air Serbia and Wizz Air took over and now have fantastic results on the Barcelona route.
DeleteOK, not the first or the last route to fail. They have some 100+ aircraft and destinations, the most in Spain, I'm sure there are room for them in BEG.
DeleteIberia, TAP and ITA? Spain, Portugal and esp Italy already have many destinations covered from Belgrade. If you were honest, you would really say: I want JU and W6 to have more competition so I can fly for 30eur.
DeleteYeah, such a dreadful thing to even think of.
DeleteKeeps repeating _every_ time makes it obnoxious.
DeleteI agree fully, I recall in 2018-19 flying with Alitalia now ITA, from Belgrade to Sicily for some 250€ return flight via Rome. Belgrade really need competition. When I look Italian Airports, especially Milan where I live I can see what diversified services can bring to passengers.
DeleteAdmin,
ReplyDeletefor us statistics lovers - great. I hope you can post this for the whole year all with seasonal lines.
Thank you again.
The biggest (negative) surprise for me is Tirana. JU is underperforming, probably due to the crazy LCC war that is ongoing there. When Wizz recovers next year, pretty much every route will have growth.
ReplyDeleteTrue that. With many new routes, the transfers via BEG are needed less?
DeleteConsidering they are increasing flights to Tirana this winter, it does not seem they have issues with loads
Deletehttps://www.exyuaviation.com/2024/09/air-serbia-to-boost-tirana-service.html
LF for BEG-TIA was 77% in July so I can only imagine how it is on winter. But it's good that they are increasing their competitiveness by increasing frequencies.
DeleteIn fact it must be lower than that since I calculated it based on ATR capacity while quite a few flights were operated by Embraer and A319.
DeleteHow is Beg-Ohd doing? Since they moved the starting date by 1 month I dont think they are doing too good
ReplyDeleteThey moved it because they didn't have available aircraft at the time.
DeleteWhen the Air Serbia lounge is upgraded we can expect the number of flights to increase. Interesting to see TIV/TGD combined numbers are so high. In most places this would justify making a separate Air Serbia lounge in Podgorica.
ReplyDeleteWhy do you think that with an upgraded lounge there will be more flights?
Delete