Pristina Airport stages strong recovery

Pristina reclaims third busiest airport title in former Yugoslavia

Pristina Airport has staged a recovery and is once again the third busiest airport in the former Yugoslavia, following a disastrous 2014 which saw it land in fifth place behind Belgrade, Zagreb, Split and Dubrovnik. During the first five months of the year, Kosovo’s main airport handled 557.556 passengers, an increase of 10.3% compared to the same period last year. The collapse of Belle Air Europe in December 2013, which used to handle around 470.000 passengers and close to 30% of the airport’s traffic, had a significant impact on Pristina’s numbers throughout 2014. However, the airport has since launched a subsidy program to encourage airlines to operate more flights to the city and attract new carriers as well.

Swiss International Air Lines and Adria Airways have increased their frequencies to the airport, while Germania has added Bergamo to the list of destinations it serves from Pristina. Furthermore, the Latvian-based Smartlynx Airlines will launch a range of seasonal flights from the city starting June 29. The airline will operate services on behalf of local tour operators to Malmo, Basel, Brussels, Hannover, Dusseldorf, Stuttgart, Munich and Memmingen with an Airbus A320 aircraft. Meanwhile, discussions are taking place between the Kosovan and Serbian governments regarding the resumption of flights between Belgrade and Pristina after more than fifteen years. “Both countries have targets to join the European Union, and this will give a good signal that our two nations are leaving the past behind, and looking for a better future”, Driton Hyseni, Pristina Airport’s Slot Coordinator says.

It is estimated that Pristina Airport will continue to record strong passenger growth in the years to come. Visa limitations have resulted in Pristina Airport’s traffic being largely one-way. Some 70% of its passenger structure is composed of the Kosovan diaspora living in Switzerland and Germany. It is expected that visa liberalisation for Kosovans in Schengen countries will come into force in the coming years, which will further stimulate growth at the airport. “Visa liberalisation will make a significant impact and will develop air transport. The people in Kosovo are young, they like to travel, and when they have a chance they will”, Pristina Airport’s Managing Director, Haldun Fırat Kokturk, says.

EX-YU airport performance, January - May

AirportPAXChange (%)
Belgrade1.675.999 9.0
Zagreb911.052 8.5
Pristina557.556 10.3
Skopje490.651 17.2
Ljubljana476.984 7.6
Dubrovnik342.436 6.3
Split338.563 7.9
Sarajevo277.088 12.9
Podgorica*167.451 13.4
Tivat*85.237 0.3

* Figures for Podgorica and Tivat are for the January - April period

Comments

  1. Anonymous09:39

    I think that Split can confirm their title of 3rd the busiest airport in Ex-Yu. We will see how will be results after summer season.

    Is it true that OU will boost frequency on elite Zagreb-Pristina-Zagreb?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:58

      Quite the contrary, the route was reduced from three to two weekly night flights.

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:42

    *route, not elite ... T9 made a mistake ...sorry :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous09:53

    wow so much green. Well done to all airports!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous10:46

    Finally getting a little back on track!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous10:48

    30% difference between Zagreb and Pristina, unbeliavable.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous10:59

    Very good news! Pristina is the one for the future changes fast and getting better.
    I am happy that in all cities have increased passengers.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous11:01

    Norwegian (NAX) has, since April, started direct flights from Oslo to Prishtina every Saturday. This route will operate until late October. The interest for this route has been tremendous, with full aircraft every week. During summer time Prishtina will be served 4 times a week (3 NAX and 1 SAS).

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous11:15

    Ex-Yu - I think in the future you should post opinion polls to your site on some regional aviation matters, could be interesting.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous11:30

    Jel moze neko zasto ASL mora da pregovara da bi letela u PRN ?
    INN-NS

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:34

      ASL ne pregovara nego pregovaraju vlade Srbije i Kosova zato sto Sbija nema nema nikakvu suverenost nad nebom niti bilo cim na Kosovu.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous11:45

      O suverenitetu bolje da ne pisemo samo ce ispasti glupost.
      Pa valjda i PRN ima za cilj sto vise putnika.
      INN-NS

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:50

      Postoje odredjene regulative i ne moze tek tako da poleti neko za bilo koju destinaciju. Pritom, odlukom Srbije, zabranjeno je bilo kom avionu koji poleti sa teritorije Srbije da sleti u Pristinu tako da moze da bude Pristini i u najvecem interesu, jednostavno bez pregovora ne moze niko da leti izmedju Srbije i Kosova.

      Delete
  10. Anonymous11:35

    There was a great site in PRN a few days ago. A passenger United B747-400 landed. I think they were carrying military personell and cargo.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous12:31

      Check out on Facebook @ Pristina Airport Spotters. I saw photos and videos of United Airlines B744 in Pristina!!

      Delete
  11. Anonymous12:05

    So refreshing to see all airports doing well. Well done!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous13:03

    Impresivan broj putnika u BEG zahvaljujuci ASL , jos jedan dokaz da bez dobre nacionalne aviokompanije nema ni dobrog rasta na Aerodromu.
    INN-NS

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous13:06

    OT - What happened to ASL's 737 in Moscow? Talking of 737, one was just sent to Paris this morning, several hours late...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous13:23

      ...or to the A319 in Moscow, it didn't return.

      Delete
  14. Anonymous14:02

    Izgubljen Avion, rase Airbus. Odaziva se na ime YU-APA. Poslednji put viđen u okolini Surčina oko prvog juna. Nalazaču sledi nagrada. Živahan i voli da leti. Bele boje, sa plavo-crvenim repom kao na slici:

    http://img.planespotters.net/photo/561000/original/YU-APB-Air-Serbia-Airbus-A319-100_PlanespottersNet_561927.jpg

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous14:04

      odaziva se na APB

      Delete
  15. Anonymous14:05

    Anywhere you search for @BKPRspotters
    you will see all kind of heavy aircrafts B744, A330, DC10, and Antonov in Pristina PRN!!

    Example,
    https://instagram.com/bkprspotters/
    Nice pictures

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous15:02

    http://www.avgeekery.com/blog/2015/6/12/787-dreamliner-wows-the-web-with-airshow-prep-video
    Svaka cast pilotima :)
    INN-NS

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous16:49

      nije potrebno da se potpisujes ako pises sa svog naloga a ne kao anon
      RTRD-BGD

      Delete
    2. Anonymous16:55

      Ostala mi navika takva :)
      INN-NS

      Delete
  17. Anonymous16:16

    Heads up... Tunisair sending its brand spanking new A330 into BEG this evening...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous16:40

      Ako ga neko uslika nea objavi )
      INN-NS

      Delete
    2. AirCEO17:18

      Wouldn't it be fun to see that Tunisair passenger A330-200 attached to BEG jetbridge? It can be done, A332 L1 door sill height is about the same height range as for A300-600, pictured here docked at BEG jet bridge (photo by Dejan Milinkovic):

      http://www.airliners.net/aviation-photos/photos/7/4/7/1349747.jpg

      Delete
    3. Anonymous17:19

      Jos uvek svuda pise A320

      Delete
    4. Anonymous18:48

      its a A320 on fr24. What have you been smoking dude to believe that A330 was coming today?

      Delete
    5. Anonymous19:37

      Šaljivdžija ;)

      Delete
    6. Anonymous21:41

      Good... joke... funny... guy... who... could...it...be...?

      Delete
    7. Anonymous23:14

      The door is not an issue, it's the wingspan. ;)

      Delete
    8. Anonymous23:50

      Wingspan on A330 is not an issue if you evacuate adjacent positions

      Delete
    9. Anonymous23:54

      Nema veze on ce doci , ako treba moze i na pisti da se sredi :p najvaznije je da nosi ASL livery :)
      INN-NS

      Delete
    10. Anonymous00:48

      A330 can fit on C1A, C3A and C5A. Two A330 at the same time would take up almost all of C concourse. They can be parked remotely on C7A and C9A but ATRs would have to moved to B stands, same when that Russian guy came to town.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous07:51

      Or when Etihad widebody is diverted to Belgrade.

      Delete
  18. Anonymous17:54

    What is going on with ju330? Going rounds around Pecinci?

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous19:34

    http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Drustvo/567331/Er-Srbija-zadovoljna-nalazima-Direktorata-o-posadama

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous21:37

    Užičani Kinezima nude Ponikve (!): ministar pravde (!!) Srbije doveo kinesku delegaciju. Predsednica kineske delegacija rekla da su Kinezi najviše zainteresovani za poljoprivredu (!!!).

    Ovo je stvarno lud zbunjenog. Aerodrom Beograd očajnički treba ozbiljnog investitora a oni nude Ponikve gde se u najboljem slučaju može za pola miliona napraviti ski kuća kao aerodromska zgrada i dovesti turboprop sa 30 turista.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous22:50

    What's going on with JU today?!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous00:05

    Pa ici ce FRA ali kasni 17 sahata!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous08:21

    OT: ETIHAD Cancels Caucasus Service from Sep 2015

    ETIHAD is adjusting planned operation to The Caucasus, which sees service cancellation to Yerevan, Baku and Tbilisi. From 01SEP15, ETIHAD is cancelling service on Abu Dhabi – Yerevan route, where it currently operates 4 times a week. The last flight, operated by Airbus A320, operates on 31AUG15 from Abu Dhabi, 01SEP15 from Yerevan.

    EY298 AUH2230 – 0155+1EVN 320 x246
    EY299 EVN0310 – 0610AUH 320 x357

    In addition, the airline previously planned to launch 4 weekly Abu Dhabi – Baku service from 01OCT15, and 3 weekly Abu Dhabi – Tbilisi flights from 02OCT15, is now cancelled.

    Previously planned schedule as follow.

    Abu Dhabi – Baku
    EY289 AUH1110 – 1510GYD 320 x357
    EY288 GYD1805 – 2000AUH 320 x357

    Abu Dhabi – Tbilisi
    EY209 AUH1110 – 1440TBS 320 357
    EY210 TBS1640 – 2000AUH 320 357

    Reservation for both routes opened in the past few days.

    Source: http://airlineroute.net/2015/06/10/ey-caucasus-sep15/

    ReplyDelete
  24. Anonymous08:30

    Seems JU had for the first time all 6 ATR in the air:

    JU 634 Warsaw 18:10 (12.06.) 18:10 (12.06.) C2 ATR 72 Airborne at 18:43
    JU 614 Prague 18:10 (12.06.) 18:10 (12.06.) C7 ATR 72 Airborne at 18:31
    JU 234 Zagreb 18:20 (12.06.) 18:20 (12.06.) A4b ATR 72 Airborne at 18:45
    JU 194 Ljubljana 18:20 (12.06.) 18:20 (12.06.) A8 ATR 72 Airborne at 18:35
    JU 604 Vienna 18:25 (12.06.) 18:25 (12.06.) C1 ATR 72 Airborne at 18:33
    JU 624 Budapest 18:35 (12.06.) 18:35 (12.06.) A4a ATR 72 Airborne at 18:50

    ReplyDelete

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