The Slovenian Ministry for Infrastructure has confirmed the receipt of an application from Cyprus Airways for the launch of several routes from Ljubljana. However, it highlighted that the application is incomplete and needs to be rectified before any decision can be made. The Cypriot flag carrier submitted its proposal as part of the Slovenian government’s open call for subsidies for the launch of new routes from the country. In a statement to the daily "Delo," the Ministry for Infrastructure stated, "In the fourth public tender aimed at enhancing Slovenia’s air connectivity, an application was received from Charlie Airlines, operating under the Cyprus Airways brand. The aid allocation committee has formally assessed the application and identified deficiencies that hinder a decision based on its merits. The carrier has been requested to address these shortcomings. A comprehensive review of the application and a final decision will be made following the necessary modifications."
The Slovenian government has so far held four public calls with the aim to attract new carriers to Ljubljana, yielding mixed outcomes. Luxair, airBaltic, Norwegian, and Iberia have all benefited from the aid, with the latter two to launch operations to the Slovenian capital this summer season. With fourteen million euros remaining in unallocated funds earmarked for enhancing the country’s air connectivity, Cyprus Airways could potentially secure a portion of this sum if its application proves successful. For its part, Cyprus Airways has said it is “part of our strategic plan to grow with new bases around the Mediterranean and beyond”. The carrier currently operates a fleet of two Airbus A220-300 aircraft and two A320s.
During this week's Routes Europe conference, Hermes Airports, the operator of Cyprus’ Larnaca and Paphos airports, said it was targeting flights to Ljubljana as it focuses on closing existing connectivity gaps to European capitals. Maria Kouroupi, the Director of Aviation Development, Marketing and Communication at Hermes Airports, highlighted Ljubljana as a strategic objective. Slovenia last boasted flights to Cyprus in 2007 when Adria Airways operated a total of seven roundtrips to Larnaca in July and August of that year with its Airbus A320 aircraft.
So we can expect that they will operate flights to Larnaca. Which other routes could they have applied for?
ReplyDeleteProbably some routes like Berlin, Manchester, Rome. Major cities with no flights to LJU yet that could benefit from p2p both ways
DeleteThis would be a fantastic addition to LJU. I really hope the government gives them approval.
ReplyDeleteThe government does not need to give them any approval. As an EU carrier, they can freely start routes within EU. The talks here are whether the government will sponsor any of their costs for opening new lines.
DeleteI was referring to that and it is obvious Cyprus Airways won't do it without the subsidies.
DeleteI think at least LCA will happen with or without subsidies.
DeleteHow many routes?
ReplyDeleteDepends on the approval (they applied for some routes outside EU), the guesses are around 7
Deletewow that's huge
DeleteFrom Bratušek; "ciperski prevoznik je oddal namero za kar nekaj destinacij", simply from slovenian language perspective, that means that there are at least 5:
Delete-je oddal namero za eno destinacijo
-je oddal namero za dve destinaciji
-je oddal namero za tri, šti destinacije
-je oddal namero za kar nekaj destinacij
So in my opinion at least 5 were submited
Let's say it is five. Which ones could they be? Larnaca is a given obviously but what other ones?
DeleteFrom their already existing destinations:
Delete-Prague
-Rome
-Barcelona
-Heraklion
From what is missing:
-Replace Heraklion with Manchester
-Bucharest
Stockholm, Madrid, Lisbon...
DeleteFrom the comments of the ministry yesterday at the LJU-RIX route ceremony it seems like they are fairly certain that something will happen, mentioning active corporation between ministry and the airline, as well as "this is not all".
ReplyDeleteAlso director of marketing in Larnaca seemingly announced the route already.
Israel situation is hurting the airline so I fully can see an A220 being stationed in Ljubljana, operating the likes of Berlin, Amsterdam, Oslo, Bucharest, Sarajevo, Barcelona, Madrid, Manchester, Prague
I assume they would base a plane in Ljubljana?
ReplyDeleteYes
DeleteManchester please.
ReplyDeleteThis guy
DeleteManchester didn't work and will never work as a P2P year round destination from LJU
DeleteTrue only FRA works year round.
DeleteAnd Munich
DeleteAnd Paris, Amsterdam, London, Brussels, Belgrade, Priština, Istanbul.. stop being salty.
Deleteand Skopje
DeleteCould be a gamechanger for LJU
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteIt really needs this to happen
DeleteFrom a few people in Ministry I hear, that what the airline is planning is securing the rest of the money or large portion if it, to base an aircraft there. So they would practically be paid €14.000.000 to have one aircraft stationed.
ReplyDeleteLet's not forget that Norwegian is being paid 500.000€ for one route, twice weekly. So just with that you can get your number of destinations
I still think it would have been wiser to give those 14 million to Ryanair. They would have made a real difference to LJU and it would have been immediate.
DeleteIs 500k really for one route alone? 50% in airport subsidies is probably closer to 100k
DeleteVrednost pogodbe o sofinanciranju s prevoznikom Luxair znaša 257.960,30 evrov, s prevoznikom airBaltic 284.407,53 evrov, s prevoznikom Norwegian Air 557.518,37 evrov in s prevoznikom Iberia Airlines 18.773,70 evrov. V tem trenutku obratuje samo proga Luksemburg–Ljubljana–Luksemburg, v zvezi s katero je bilo doslej prevozniku Luxair izplačanih 31.226,90 evrov.
DeleteRyanair is free to apply. The public funds can’t be just given.
DeleteThis is peanuts for what Ryanair wants/gets at other airport. That's why they are not applying.
DeleteVsekakor je dajanje subvencij tujim prevoznikom mnogo lažje kot nacionalnemu prevozniku. To je slovenska posebnost v svetovnem merilu!
DeleteOh yeah, I forgot these airlines will fly for multiple years, not just one. At least that
DeleteCan't wait to see what routes they plan
ReplyDeleteI'm really interested to see how many routes are actually planned. Government says "numerous"
DeleteLjubljana Airport could completely recover sooner rather than later.
ReplyDeleteBut it's already later
DeleteExactly. Most airports in the region have recovered long ago.
DeleteLjubljansko letališče je z izgubo nacionalnega prevoznika izgubilo tekmo v regiji in zelo verjetno nikoli več ne bo imelo vloge, ki jo je imelo pred uničenjem Adrie. Večina komentarjev so samo sanjarjenje.
DeleteBravo Fraport!
ReplyDeleteYeah they really did a lot to attract Cyprus Airways... not
DeleteBasically they had no role in attracting Norwegian, air Baltic, Iberia or Luxair.
DeleteOther than Aegean Fraport has not attracted a single airline since Covid. All of them came thanks to the government subsidies.
DeleteThey have 8 A220 on order, when are deliveries planned?
ReplyDeleteThey will get 2 A220 in 2024, so 4 in the fleet this year: https://cyprus-mail.com/2024/01/22/cyprus-airways-to-double-a220-fleet-in-2024/
DeleteSounds perfect - use one for home base expansion, and try opening new markets with the second
DeleteI just don't get that they are betting their luck with LJU. To be honest I think there are larger and more profitable markets.
DeleteJust saying that Slovenia is added as a destination on their website ;)
ReplyDeletehttps://cyprusairways.holiday/eu/destinations/slovenia
That doesn't mean much but hope it happens.
DeleteFrom what you sent, it looks like LCA-LJU will start soon. Probably without subsidies, but hardly.
DeleteHow did you come to that conclusion
DeleteWell the list lists all their destinations, so LJU is missing in reality. So this is a new destination.
DeleteDidn't they also announce Dubrovnik late last year but they never put these flights on sale.
DeleteExciting times coming
ReplyDeleteAbout time
DeleteLet's hope it does not fall through like with new national airline plans.
DeleteI really hope this materializes. It could be a gamechanger for LJU
ReplyDeleteIt will be interesting what they do if they base the A220 in Ljubljana. Especially since Cyprus Airways has an actual dedicated business class with 2x2 configuration. Would this be competitive of intra Europe routes from LJU?
ReplyDeleteI think the only reason they have that type of business class is because the A220s they got were destined for some African carrier and they actually have their cabins. I assume the upcoming A220s will be in all economy layout.
DeleteOh didn't know that. Thanks
DeleteWhich African airline were they supposed to go to
DeleteAir Sénégal
DeleteThe two planes took their first flights over six months ago and were due to join Air Senegal's fleet - however, due to the ongoing issues with Pratt & Whitney's GTF engines, the Senegalese carrier decided to cancel its remaining A220 orders.
DeleteThe Air Senegal cabin in those A220 look really nice, business class seats can go to bed function, economy seats are leather with movable headrest, usb ports, tablet holders, aft toilet have windows.....
Deletebut the engines are really bad.....
Anyone have some pics of the cabins?
DeleteThere are all over the internet, e.g. https://www.cbn.com.cy/article/2023/7/21/723928/cyprus-airways-welcomes-the-airbus-a220-to-its-fleet-pics/
DeleteAnd here is the business class cabin
Deletehttps://media.licdn.com/dms/image/D4E22AQEOQIug-n5Y2A/feedshare-shrink_800/0/1697289471115?e=2147483647&v=beta&t=M_6H_Qo10Axnjaa8dr6Fl3YR7bGcviNio5KZ5LH3Yws
wow looks nice
DeleteBut is it economical having a business like that intra Europe?
Delete@Anon 13.30 how do you mean the engines are bad? The planes are flying no?
DeleteWhat was Cyprus Airways' financial performance like last year?
ReplyDeleteThey have not reported their financials yet.
DeleteLet's just hope it does not turn out like Lumiwings in Tuzla
ReplyDeleteTuzla gave them a certain sum of money and hoped that it lasts, while Slovenian tender is made in a way where Slovenia covers 50% of airport cost, so it's automatically on per-flight basis
DeleteThis would be huge! Hopefully Slo government does not screw this up. Their track record with aviation related matters is appalling.
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteI just noticed on this photo that they kept the old Cyprus Airways logo on the engines. Nice touch :)
ReplyDeleteTheir livery is really nice in general
DeleteLove it.
DeleteI like it too.
DeleteWould they operate flights from Slovenia under the Cyprus Airways brand or would they make up a new one?
ReplyDeleteI think they would make a new brand.
DeleteNot necessary. No need to spend money in branding. Only if they would decided to open a new company with public co-funding that would be logical.
DeleteAdria Airways brand is for sale ;)
DeleteIt would be nice to have the brand of Adria Airways again.
DeleteEspecially on A220!
DeleteLet me get this straight: It was major problem to cover for Adria loss; if it was managed better it would be much, much less than 16 mil they will helicopter now to anybody who is willing to fly to LJU? Bratusek is definetly an aviation gravedigger
DeleteOnce you are in EU, you (sadly) can't keep throwing away the money to your airline, and that's the problem. If Slovenia wasn't in the EU, the privatization would most probably never happened, and if it did, Adria would be bought back in 2019
DeleteWhat are you talking about. These are official figures: Creditors of the bankrupt airline Adria Airways filed claims for a total of 151 million euros, of which the bankruptcy administrator recognised them for 87.7 million euros.
Delete@10.59 Adria brand has been sold
Deletehttps://www.exyuaviation.com/2021/11/adria-brand-and-trademarks-ready-to.html
I actually don’t see any added value for Cyprus Airways to buy Adria Airways brand. In Slovenia, the attitude towards this brand is ambivalent, both positive and negative, and the brand is not widely recognised as worth investing in. I would assume that it is easier for them to start a new story on the Slovenian market with their own brand than the Adria Airways brand. If the Adria Airways brand had value, it would have been sold faster and for a significantly higher amount.
DeleteThe Adria brand is no longer relevant. It has been 5 years now since it has been retired. Time to move on.
DeleteAdria je vsekakor imela boljši ugled v tujini (predvsem Nemčija) kot pa v delu slovenske javnosti. Sicer pa je bolje, da se ime Adria ne umaže s takimi skrpucali, ki bodo nastajali v bodoče. Adria - bilo je nekoč in nikoli več!!
DeleteI would really love to see them in Ljubljana, also if they have a Slovenian livery that would be very nice too. I vote for Adria!
ReplyDelete5 let prepozno. Vse, kar bo sledilo, bo čuden hibrid. Ne tič ne miš.
DeleteCY isn’t even well established in LCA with a small network while most of Cypriots prefer Aegean via ATH to travel to any destination. Y’all think CY can work in LJU?
ReplyDeleteWith the correct buissnes model and tickets not being to expesive yes... otherwise it will be like Tuzla with Lumiwings
DeleteGlasujem za Air Slovenija
ReplyDeleteThis would be a very good development. Whatever the new routes are. I could see LJU reaching pre Covid passenger levels next year in this case.
ReplyDeleteAnd if not, when is the airport expected to reach preCovid levels?
Delete2026
DeleteNi važno, kdaj bo doseglo 2019. V vsakem primeru bo zaostajalo za letališči v regiji.
DeleteSpet ponavljanje ene in iste laži. Komu v korist? Samo Beograd in Zagreb sta na boljšem, vsa ostala letališča v regiji so 20-30% pod številkami v 2019.
Delete@16:56 couldn't lie more lol
DeleteTole sem napisal na enem drugem forumu. Vir so spletne strani posameznih letališč, z razliko z Italijo, kjer številke objavlja ENAC:
DeleteOd okoliških letališč sta samo Zagreb (+8%) in Trst (+19%) presegla številke iz 2019. Pula je na -45%, Reka -23%, Celovec -27%, Gradec -29%.
Pa še ostala večja letališča, ki jih Slovenci radi uporabljamo: Budimpešta -9%, Benetke -3% , Bologna +6%, Dunaj -6%.
Pozabil si letališča v ex YU, upam, da ne namerno.
DeleteNamerno. Ljubljana namreč najbolj konkurira Celovcu, Trstu, Zagrebu in Gradcu, ne Banja Luki, Podgorici, Prištini, Nišu in Tuzli.
DeleteNajprej omeniš da sta v regiji samo Zagreb in Beograd na boljšem, nato rečeš da je še Trst in da Beograd ni več del regije. Make up your mind already.
DeleteJa, omemba Beograda je bila moja napaka, ampak to ne spremeni dejstva da lažeš in zavajaš. Komu v korist? Veš le ti.
DeleteIzgleda da si nov na tem portalu, saj se tukaj od nekdaj omenja vsa letališča iz bivše Juge kot del regije. Tako da ti lažeš in zavajaš kako gre Ljubljani "odlično" v primerjavi z drugimi.
DeleteUpam, da se boš enkrat že naučil brat. Pa lep pozdrav.
DeleteUpam da se boš enkrat že naučil kaj je regija. Pa lep pozdrav.
DeleteEven if they just launch Larnaca I will be happy :)
ReplyDeleteIt seems like that definitely happening.
Delete