The Slovenian Ministry for Infrastructure has revealed that hybrid carrier Flydubai is negotiating with Ljublana Airport's operator Fraport Slovenia over the introduction of flights. The Slovenian government and Ljubljana Airport launched an offensive last year to attract Gulf carriers, however, this is the first time that concrete talks with a particular airline have been confirmed. Slovenia and the United Arab Emirates previously signed a Bilateral Air Agreement, which enables flexibility on routes, capacity, number of frequencies and types of aircraft between the two countries, for both passenger and cargo flights. Ljubljana Airport has been seeking nonstop services to the Middle East despite increased competition from nearby rivals in Zagreb and Venice, which has made it increasingly difficult to secure such operations.

Flydubai has significantly expanded its network across the former Yugoslavia over the past few years. Apart from Belgrade, Skopje and Sarajevo, which it has been serving since 2011 onwards, it also introduced seasonal operations to both Tivat and Podgorica last year, as well as a Sarajevo - Podgorica service over the winter. This summer, the airline will launch flights to Dubrovnik. Flydubai is also working with Emirates to better optimise its network. Apart from a wide-ranging codeshare agreement between the two airlines, which now covers all routes in the former Yugoslavia, both are seeking ways to better coordinate their schedules and even swap some destinations, either permanently or on a seasonal basis.

Last year, Emirates extended its reach into Ljubljana after finalising an agreement with the Slovenian shuttle bus company GoOpti. Customers are able to book tickets to Ljubljana Airport or Ljubljana's railway station through the Emirates website. Passengers are shuttled from either of the two locations to Zagreb Airport, from which they transfer onto Emirates' service to Dubai. The Emirati airline has targeted the Slovenian market since introducing flights to the Croatian capital last year. The carrier previously told EX-YU Aviation News that Slovenia is the strongest contributor to its business in the former Yugoslavia. Ljubljana, which is in close proximity to a number of larger airports, is looking to increase its competitiveness by offering more direct flights. Besides Emirates, both Zagreb Airport and Venice are served by Qatar Airways.