Serbia proposes Sarajevo flights for Hainan


Serbia has suggested for China's Hainan Airlines to operate nonstop flights between Beijing and Belgrade next year, which would then continue on to Sarajevo. The carrier currently maintains a two weekly service between the Chinese and Serbian capitals via Prague, with fifth freedom rights on the Prague - Belgrade - Prague sectors. The Mayor of Belgrade, Siniša Mali, noted that he would hold talks with Hainan and suggest the amendment to the route. "Since our two countries [Serbia and Bosnia] see more and more tourists each year, it is our aim to offer a joint product so we can attract an even greater number of visitors from China. In that respect, I discussed the extension of flights from Beijing to Belgrade onto Sarajevo and we will hold talks with our Chinese partners on this matter".

The comments came following a meeting between Mr Mali and his Sarajevo counterpart Abdulah Skaka. "We are focusing on tourism. Sarajevo is a recognisable tourist destinations and we have agreed on a joint promotion of our two cities both in Europe and further abroad", Mr Skaka said. For its part, Hainan Airlines recently noted it had no plans to expand in Central and Eastern Europe. Concerning its Belgrade operations, the carrier said that if there is sufficient demand it would either up frequencies or introduce a nonstop service from the Chinese capital next spring. "We will adjust these plans based on market demand. We will evaluate the possibilities whether to increase frequency or operate nonstop before the summer season", Hainan said.

The Mayors of Sarajevo and Beijing recently discussed the establishment of flights between the two cities. The head of Beijing, Chen Jining, showed particular interest in the matter, noting that services between the two capitals would significantly boost tourism. The two sides agreed for the relevant authorities from each country to continue talks over potential flights. Bosnia and Herzegovina is set to join Serbia and Montenegro in a regional tourism initiative aimed at attracting Chinese travellers. Currently, tourists arriving on Hainan Airlines' recently launched service to Belgrade continue their journey onto Montenegro following several days in Serbia. Bosnia and Herzegovina is expected to become the third destination on the tour of the region which will offer a "Paths of Walter" package based on the Yugoslav Partisan film "Walter Defends Sarajevo", which is, to this day, immensely popular in China.

Comments

  1. Anonymous09:06

    Can the A330 land in Sarajevo?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:14

      Yes it can.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:23

      AtSJJ already seen much bigger a/c: B773 B744 AN124

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:41

      Then what was Qatar CEO Al Baker talking about last week that they can't send anything larger to Sarajevo than the A321 because the airport can't handle it?

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:49

      I don't think he was referring that the airport couldn't handle the aircraft landing on its runway. It had more to do with logistics. QR was being difficult even with their A320 4 times per week about checkin desk requirements, staffing requirements etc.

      Delete
    5. It is about reduction of mtow on departure. High mountains around SJJ become much higher with one engine out on mtow

      Delete
    6. Anonymous14:59

      A330 SJJ-BEG: no restrictions
      A330 SJJ-PEK: restrictions

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:09

    This could be an interesting routing. Might work.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous09:09

    Belgrade-Sarajevo on an A330? :D how long would that flight even last?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nemjee09:31

      Probably around 25 to 30 minutes flying time.

      Delete
  4. Anonymous09:10

    Otkud parking space za widebody u SJJ? Već sada je sve puno uskotrupaca...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:17

      Zar nisu skoro sirili stajanku?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:48

      Cijeli aerodrom se siri trenutno.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:07

      Obicno se koristi rulnica C, za A330 ako nema prostora na platformi. Inace rulnica C se samo koristi za generalnu avijaciju, tako da se zatvaranjem ne gubi nista.

      Delete
  5. Anonymous09:13

    This would be great!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous09:14

    PEK-PRG-BEG-SJJ-BEG-PRG-PEK :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:44

      If you read the article you would have noticed that the proposed route is PEK-BEG-SJJ-BEG-PEK.

      Delete
  7. Anonymous09:17

    That would be one low yield route.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:13

      I don't think so. Asian tourists use Turkish and FlyDubai for connections to Sarajevo. Every night we have groups (30-40pax) of Asian tourists that arrive with Turkish Airlines.

      Delete
  8. Nemjee09:33

    Hainan is doing relatively ok in Belgrade. They depart with around 100 passengers which is great considering they are also blocking seats for those boarding in Prague.

    Every flight arrives packed with cargo. With nonstop flights between Belgrade and China they could carry even more of it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:45

      Good to hear.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:31

      Regarding cargo section Hainan flights to Belgrade are successful. But regarding passengers it's different story. There's been 40-45 passengers per flight on average from or to Beijing so far.

      Delete
    3. Nemjee10:44

      I heard from a very reliable source at BEG that it is around 100 passengers per flight.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous12:56

      100 is really good. In summer they could easily fill it with BEG alone

      Delete
    5. Anonymous13:51

      Ask your sources if they know how many Serbs are actually using this to fly to PRG/China

      Delete
    6. Anonymous15:19

      Fate of this route will be determined by the number of tour passengers during winter months.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous19:56

      100 pax would be really good but there aren't so many. Besides around 40 pax to PEK there are around 30 pax to PRG. These figures are decreasing step by step. And,that's it.

      Delete
    8. Nemjee09:38

      I would kindly ask you not to spread false information on here because then some stick to it as if their life depended on it.

      There is a difference between wishful thinking and reality.

      Delete
  9. Anonymous09:34

    This sounds ridiculous LOL
    Just think about it - Serbia proposes to the Chinese to operate flights to Bosna... OMFG! Somebody needs to go to the hospital very fast.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:45

      So? What's your problem? You see regional cooperation an issue or you would rather everyone was biter and feuding? It's just a proposal.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:53

      Anon 9.34
      Agree. Obviously the new route is performing below expectations and an idea to salvage the route?
      I guess someone forgot to do their homework. Laughable really. Good entertainment though

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:03

      Obviously you want it to perform below expectations like you write every single time when there is a Hainan Belgrade topic. This routing shows exactly the opposite, that the route is performing well enough for them to be confident to fly nonstop between PEK and BEG. But it's not wroth wasting my time on you since you "conclusions" have little to do with aviation and it's more something else being the problem here.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:12

      9:34, +10000, thanks ex-yu for providing us with hilarious content, well done :)

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:33

      Air Serbia should feed the flight. Thry should work with Hainan to coordinate the schedule so it maximises connections.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous11:08

      I dont see a reason to feed it because of stop in Prague.CSA should feed the flight from PRG.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous12:16

      I meant when it goes PEK-BEG non-stop.

      Delete
  10. Anonymous09:41

    A 100 tourist pax per flight? That’s it? Good luck Hainan hope the new route works out

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:43

      Yes it's good because the majority of the plane is blocked for people from Prague. And the route launched a month and a half ago and its winter season. I'm sure the airline know what's it doing. Certainly more than you.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:47

      People seem to forget that the HNA group signed an agreement with the Serbian government about opening a flight school, investing in tourism in Serbia and several other things. Flights are just the first and minor step in a much bigger plan.

      Delete
    3. Nemjee10:45

      The A332 that's dispatched on this route has 186 seats in economy class.
      I doubt most passengers that board in Belgrade are flying in business class meaning economy loads are quite good.

      Delete
  11. Anonymous10:04

    popcorn*

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous10:07

    Nice to see regional cooperation in aviation and tourism.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous10:27

    Nice idea but I think it will stay PEK-PRG-BEG next summer but will be increased to three per week.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous11:11

    Why not PEK-BEG-ZAG or PEK-BEK-LJU? Both cities reached out to Hainan.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous12:00

      ZAG is the best choice

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:01

      Yeah, that's why they have flights to China. LMAO!

      Delete
  15. Anonymous11:38

    Probably because Croatian tourism authorities have their own stand-alone view on how they want to position their destination ie. not tying it up with Serbia....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:41

      Yeah but it would be in their interest to make the most of it especially before slovenia proceeds with its own plans to get China flights.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous12:13

      Why ? They already have strong inbound tourist arrivals from China, they don't need to tie their existing offerings with Serbia, Bosnia or Montenegro.

      They are much better off putting their efforts into a chinese carrier flying direct to croatia instead of it being a "tag" on some existing european service. Besides, in doing so, they will split bed nights in croatia with one of these other destinations .... pointless, since they have the strongest tourist offerings of any ex-yu country

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12:15

      Obviously they don't know how to get the Chinese to fly there as Croatia is the only larger country in the region not to have direct air-links.

      Delete
    4. How is Croatia a larger country?
      Also, if there are no direct Chinese flights at this moment, does it mean they're won't be?

      Delete
    5. Anonymous12:38

      Larger compared to Slovenia, Montenegro, Macedonia and so on.

      Well if there are flights to Slovenia, Serbia, Hungary, Italy and Austria... then chances of ZAG flights are getting slimmer.

      Best case scenario are flights to DBV

      Delete
    6. How about we see what happens.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous12:55

      I agree but let's also look at what is happening around us.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous15:25

      Ummm...anon at 12:15PM - Croatia isnt't the only "larger" country in the region without a direct link to China. Only Serbia has a link. That's it. Slovenia doesn't. Neither does any other ex-yu country, or Bulgaria, Romania...etc.

      Delete
  16. Anonymous11:41

    It will be up to the Chinese to decide.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous11:42

    As someone who flies BEG-SJJ once per month I would be more than happy if this happens. Give me an A330 over an ATR anyday.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous11:43

    Talking of BEG, what could be Qatar's strategy there? I checked their flights for the past week and in those seven days they sent: 5x A321, 1x A333 and 1x A320.

    In the next seven days it will be almost the same:
    4x A321, 2x A320 and 1x A333.

    Could they increase BEG to 10 weekly soon?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous13:14

      As far as I know, 333 was only one off due certain group business. I believe QR in BEG is quite ok now with one daily, load factor is not that high to suggest increase of frequencies or capacity. Seems business is okay for QR in BEG, especially after JU pulled the plug on AUH, but one daily is quite enough for now. But, I am sure that QR could increase to 10 or 14 in not too distant future, given number of available narrow body aircrafts.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous13:18

      QR increased both frequencies and capacity. Soon it will be operated by A321 exclusively.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous17:52

      A330 is due to Serbian Football team travelling to China and back, booking a big chunck of business class, so A321 wasn't enough for them. For such a high yield group, they decided to send in a A330 and give a special discount in Economy for those two days. Smart move, but in reality, it's a one-off thing.

      Etihad is completely non-competitive for Far East since they cancelled the JU flight - they have connecting times of 20 hours (!) in AUH on the way back to Europe, or routing via FCO. Can't say what's worse. Anyway, China/Japan/Korea pax are now turning to QR, Fly Dubai and Aeroflot, and that's 100+ daily. That's why QR is doing so well in BEG these days. It's the only full service ME3 carrier properly serving BEG to the Far East.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous22:11

      Stupid Etihad.

      Delete
  19. Anonymous12:47

    Apsolutno nema potrebe za ovim.
    Ono sto BEG kao najveci aerdorom u ex yu mora da obezbedi je direktan let PEK-BEG dok bi Air Serbia morala da potpise code share sa HU, uskladi vreme letenja sa HU letom i da sve putnike sa linije za Pekinga podeli po ostalim ex yu drzavama.
    Jedini realni win-win

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous13:20

      Pa Beograd ništa ne gubi linijom PEK-BEG-SJJ-BEG-PEK, svakako bi imao direktnu povezanost sa Pekingom i plus dodatnu vezu sa Sarajevom i to sa widebody :)A sa ostalih tržišta može da dovodi putnike putem codeshare sporazuma sa JU

      Delete
    2. Anonymous15:21

      I am no expert but that seems like a lot of fuel for an extra flight to SJJ with a limited potential for PEK flight. Much more economical via AT7. Sounds a bit amateurish to suggest such flight, to be honest.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous22:07

      Of course. And the guy is Air Serbia's chairman. Oh good lord.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous22:18

      It's also more economical to fly PRG-BEG with ATR than A330, yet Hainan does it. Someone has a problem with BEG having another flight with A330, it seems.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous23:54

      I don't have a problem with BEG having another A330 flight. Chinese will ultimayely decide. And while they are rich, they are not stupid. Comparing Belgrade to Sarajevo...

      Delete
  20. Anonymous13:32

    JU gubi putnike jer ne mogu po kvalitetu aviona konkurisati HU a gubi i HU jer im avion bespotrebno ostaje duze na Balkanu.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous13:44

    Sarajevo is logical and makes sense, Chinese are crazy about "Walter defends SARAJEVO", so they gonna want to visit it.

    Serbia there wants Chinese tourist to travel from Belgrade, via Serbia, to Sarajevo, with bus... So Chinese tourists can fly home from Sarajevo, no need to go back to BEG again with a bus.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous14:15

      Why didn't Sarajevo then arrange direct flight PEK-SJJ and you do not need BEG at all?
      DO not forget that Serbia arranged flights PEK-PRG-BEG and hopefully in the future PEK-BEG so addition to SJJ should be done only by code share with JU.
      BiH gets tourists and Serbia gets flights.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous14:19

      I agree. Distances are not that large so they take the bus. Serbia is not a charity case, it should pursue what it suits it the most and that's non stop terminator flights to BEG.

      Delete
  22. Anonymous16:57

    Makes sense, Bosnia and China will abolish visas on 1st of January 2018 :)

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous19:08

    That's a stupid idea. Rather JU should introduce additional flights to cater for transfer passengers. Who thinks Sarajevo can warrant enough pax to dispatch an A330 for such a short flight?

    This shows the whole "vision" of Air Serbia's managment or lack thereof.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous22:12

      Shows lack of your vision, without quotes. It doesn't say Air Serbia, just Serbia in the text. Time for new glasses.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous23:45

      Sinisa Mali is Air Serbia's charmain, time to get out of the cave.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous05:29

      He is also Mayor of Belgrade and he spoke in that role, if you are capable of comprehending the article. Air Serbia has nothing to do with this, it's just your imagination.

      Proposed extension of PEK route is not operated by Air Serbia, they don't even codeshare on the current route. Hainan is actually direct competitor of Air Serbia on the BEG-PRG segment as HU has fifth freedom. Time for you to stop making retared comments.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:24

      It is still Air Serbia's stupidity not to speak out against this before it even surfaced in the media, sicne this move clearly isn't in their interest. But then, cutting AUH wasn't either.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous16:11

      One airline does not comment on other airlines plans in general. Move to nonstop PEK-BEG would be in Air Serbia interest. Removing AUH is also in their interest.

      "This shows the whole "vision" of Air Serbia's managment or lack thereof"

      Chairman of the Board is not part of day to day managment of any company, and is independent from company's management. Couple of things you learned today.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous19:29

      Speak out internally, you i****. You're only an artist at distorting my words.

      Sure, having one more aircraft sit on the ground the whole winter makes far more sense then deploying it to AUH and bringing the much needed feed into BEG that is already very scarce. Fortunately, there are airlines such as QR around able to take advantage of that situation. Do you work for JU?

      Who spoke about day to day management? We speak about strategic decisions and unless one is blind or stupid he sees the interest of the company he represents in every decision or statement. Period.

      You've shown today how one can make a fool of himself in a very few words.

      Congratulations.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous19:53

      Shifting away from original topic when you have been soundly defeated at every point stated at 7:08 post? Not surprising. It is clear you work against Air Serbia interest. Everything you said in 7:08 post was completely wrong. You lose again, as you have on every single post you made against JU when EY/JU deal was announced.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous23:39

      You stupid. Total denial in the absence of arguments. Oh, by the way, did you lease those two A319's? Oups.

      But then again, what else can be expected from you?

      Delete
    9. Anonymous03:15

      JU should introduce additional flights to cater for transfer passengers.

      It's better to have direct flight with Hainan to SJJ than to transfer from BEG to SJJ with JU.

      Who thinks Sarajevo can warrant enough pax to dispatch an A330 for such a short flight?

      Same people that thought Belgrade does warrant enough passengers to dispatch A330 on a short flight from PRG to BEG. They were right.

      This shows the whole "vision" of Air Serbia's managment or lack thereof.

      Air Serbia management has nothing to do with it. Mayor wants more tourists in Belgrade.

      Delete
  24. Did Air Serbia cut PRG frequencies after Hainan entered the market?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous15:03

      No. Frequencies are the same at 10 per week.

      Delete
    2. I see that on some days when Hainan operates this flight, Air Serbia prices go down. So for JAN 19 - JAN 22 return flight, I can book Hainan for 174 EUR and Air Serbia goes as low as 100 EUR. On other dates, Air Serbia tickets go as high as 220 euros which is unacceptable.

      Any info on Hainan numbers on BEG - PRG sector? (w/o BEG-PEK pax)

      Delete
  25. Anonymous19:40

    Tomorrow news: Serbia propose Delta to fly Tirana

    ReplyDelete
  26. Anonymous11:24

    Are they trying to redeem themselves?

    ReplyDelete

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