Government cheering for Turkish takeover
The Montenegrin government has announced that “Turkish Airlines is close to taking over Montenegro Airlines and the country’s airports”, national broadcaster RTCG reports. However, the government adds that it won’t sell the national carrier at any cost. If it decides that it is not the best time to privatise Montenegro Airlines, the government will offer Turkish Airlines certain privileges at either Podgorica or Tivat Airport, would initiate stronger cooperation between the flag carriers of both countries and would offer the Turks an opportunity to redevelop Berane Airport in the country’s north-east. This kind of approach will be made possible by the signing of an Intergovernmental Agreement which is being drafted at the moment.Earlier in the year, the Government of Montenegro announced that it will sell a 30% share of Montenegro Airlines through a public tender by the end of the year after a failed attempt in 2010. This led to fierce criticism from Montenegro Airlines CEO, Zoran Djurišić. “The national carrier is having financial problems but in reality every airline is except for Turkish Airlines which is why we want them as partners”, the Ministry of Transport said in a statement. The extent of Montenegro Airlines’ troubles are unknown to the general public. Problems began this year when the airline was forced to suspend several routes and the government wrote off multi million Euro debt. Recently, the company that runs both of Montenegro’s international airports said its business was being jeopardised at the hands of Montenegro Airlines’ unpaid debt to Podgorica and Tivat.
I don’t get how a public company like MGX doesn’t make their finances public or passenger numbers. Isn’t it required by law that government owned companies post an annual report which should be available for everyone to see?
ReplyDelete"Certain privileges either at Tivat or Podgorica airport..."
ReplyDeleteWhat could that mean ?
Discrimination of the concurrence ?
Subsidizing and possible bailout
if Turkish fails ?
This country has become so cheesy
...a big disappointment !
Nothing against a takeover of the airline by the Turkish...
but why the airports ?
Airports should be neutral spaces !
No privileges for anyone !
Every airline, if foreign or domestic should be treated equal !
At the end all fortune goes to the
Turkish,but the investions for airports and especially the debts of Montenegro airlines have to pay Montenegrin taxpayers !
I would not be surprised if the politicians there got heavily bribed by the Turks for that shit !
nemjee what is happening with Cyprus airways flights???
ReplyDeleteErm.. it was the weekend so they are not working. They have to see if it fits in their winter timetable.
ReplyDelete@ nemjee....would make sense for cy to fly beg-lca since jat is reducing to 2x flights a week. they should start a commercial agreement, so cy could take jat pax to tlv and bey.
ReplyDeleteon a press confernce in Oslo, Qatar Airways CEO said that before Christmas arrives 4 new destinations will be announced.
ReplyDeleteIs there a chance maybe it will launch BEG,ZAG, or Skp?
To Anonymous 11:47,
ReplyDeleteDefinitely not.
I know someone who works for Qatar Airways.He said to me that they never considered flying to any destination in the former Yougoslavia.But they definitely will fly to Eastern Europe!
Now as Air Baltic(which flies to Dubai) is in troubles,Qatar is thinking about serving Doha-Riga.
Also candidates are Warsaw and Prague!
but nothing is fix yet.
I have bought today 159 EUR ticket from Belgrade to Frankfurt on YM for Wednesday. Not bad. All other tickets are at least 70 EUR more expensive.
ReplyDeleteYes, you can buy a ticket for 159 eur from Nis to Eurore destinations via Podgorica with MONTENEGRO AIRLINES , and this is very good mode to travel from south and central Serbia to for example Moscow,Zuric,Paris...
ReplyDeleteIt would make sense for CY to launch flights to Belgrade because Jat is robbing us here. They charge well over €350 for a return flight. This September their number rose by 24% between Serbia and Cyprus. Not to mention that around 2,500 passengers flew on charter flights this summer.
ReplyDeleteJat is reducing Larnaca because they are axing Dubai. They have no clue how to run a business. One of the biggest tour operators in Cyprus has approached Jat in order to arrange tours to Serbia. Jat gave them €310 group discount. Idiots.
As for Qatar flights, I do not know where you friend works but it was announced recently that for Qatar one of the biggest untapped markets are Central Asia, Ukraine, Serbia and Skopje.
The fact that flydubai decided to launch flights indicates that there is indeed a market.
If Sofia can sustain flights then Belgrade sure can. Not to mention that there is a great demand for travel from Belgrade to China and obviously Australia and South Africa.
Regards.
"If Sofia can sustain flights then Belgrade sure can". Again unreality!
ReplyDeleteLast year Sofia had 3,3 million pax
compare to 2,7 million pax of BEG
In same time Bulgaria had 6,4 million pax (Varna 1,2 million, Burgas 1,9 million pax), compare to 2,7 million in Serbia (Niš 0,03 million).
Dear Nemjee and Purger,
ReplyDeletemy personal opinion is that Belgrade would fit perfectly into Qatars sheme,but obviously the people there think otherwise.That anouncement you mentioned I could find on internet, but it is not made by Qatar officials but an unknown blogger.
Also that flydubai starts flights to Belgrade does not say that there is a market! We first will have to see if this route is profitable.
Only if it is profitable, then we can say there is a market.
" If Sofia can sustain flights..."
Well,these flights to Sofia began
some weeks ago.
It is too early to say that they are profitable!
Maybe they are not.
Flydubai is even in a better position than Qatar,because they
offer direct flights,while flights from Sofia have to make a stopover in Bucharest. I can not see anything attractive by this,
a stopover is a big minus.
Also it should be said that Qatar
postponed the start of its new destinations Tbilissi and Baku,
which should already have begun,
to february next year.
They claim fleet shortage but
low interest seems more possible.
Reminds me on the failed flights
from Chicago to Zagreb.
Btw they announced first new destination which will be
Helsinki !
Purger,
ReplyDeleteHow can you be so shortsighted? Yes, that was last year, look at the % of increased passenger numbers at Belgrade this year.
Plus, Sofia has been a member of the European Union since 01.01.2007 which means that it attracts far more passengers by default.
Also, the real question here is how long will it take for Belgrade to catch up to Sofia or even overtake it.
If you want to use the statistics then you have use all of them, not only the ones that suit you.
Anonymous,
Actually I heard that during a meeting in Athens about two/three weeks ago when there was discussion about their expansion plans.
The fact that flydubai launched Belgrade before some bigger airports in the region such as Budapest or Bucharest does say something.
I am sure that flydubai has done their homework before launching 4 weekly flights to Belgrade.
I do agree with you that the best solution is to wait and see what happens.
Hey guys,
ReplyDeleteCroatia should sell the A320 to Qatar airways !
Some guy wrote yesterday they have a fleet shortage and because of tat have to cancel flights !
Ooops...false place !
ReplyDeleteExcuse me !
Dear Nemjee,
ReplyDeletepicking Belgrade before Budapest and Bucharest says that Flydubai has to pick something what Qatar has left over.That also means in reverse that Qatar airways will not start service to Belgrade.If both would start same destination the same time they will destroy each other.Look at Tbilissi.Maybe a reason for Qatar to postpone or even cancel this destination is that Flydubai also started flying there only a week earlier.
But I agree with you that Flydubai sees something in the Serbian market,if not they easily could have picked some other city.
The best thing we can do is to book our flights with them!
Only the interest of customers can make these flights really happen.
Yes but there are other cities to where they could have flown before Qatar, like Thessaloniki.
ReplyDeleteThat could be a potential city for both airlines since they are doing well in Athens.
There is about a month left for flydubai's flights so we will have to wait and see.