Royal Jordanian Airlines is considering introducing flights between Amman and Sarajevo next year. In a statement, the airline said that the launch of new destinations is part of its turnaround plan that includes, among others, "the continuous assessment of our route network, in order to enhance traffic to Jordan and improve connectivity via our Amman base". The airline added, "We are conducting a feasibility study. The new route could cater for tourism, facilitate travel for businessmen, and enhance trade". It comes just weeks after the Bosniak member of the tripartite Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bakir Izetbegović, held talks with Jordan's Foreign Minister, Ayman Safadi, during which the two discussed potential flights between the two countries.
Royal Jordanian has been present on the Bosnian market through a codeshare agreement it has in place with Turkish Airlines. The Jordanian carrier has its codes and flight numbers on its Turkish counterpart's service between Istanbul and Sarajevo. In addition, the airline was also part of a Jordanian consortium to bid for a 49% stake in Bosnia and Herzegovina's former flag carrier B&H Airlines in 2008. Its bid was ranked second, behind Turkish Airlines. Demand from the Gulf for travel to Sarajevo continues to surge. The airport now boasts nonstop services to the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and until recently Kuwait, which was suspended as a result of operational issues at Wataniya Airways. Both Kuwait Airways and Gulf Air have expressed interest in introducing flights to Sarajevo.
Meanwhile, Sarajevo Airport saw its busiest August on record, which marked the first time it handled over 150.000 travellers in two consecutive months. It welcomed a total of 159.506 passengers through its doors, representing an increase of 10.6% on last year. The number of aircraft movements grew 5.2% to 1.586. During the January - August period, Sarajevo Airport handled 749.028 passengers, up 12.1% on 2017. Over the same period, aircraft movements improved 6.2% to 9.321. In 2018, the airport anticipates welcoming over one million passengers in a single year for the first time.
| Month | PAX | Change (%) |
|---|---|---|
| JAN | 54.113 | ▲ 24.8 |
| FEB | 48.986 | ▲ 19.1 |
| MAR | 65.991 | ▲ 15.0 |
| APR | 86.995 | ▲ 9.0 |
| MAY | 81.026 | ▼ 3.7 |
| JUN | 92.997 | ▲ 19.0 |
| JUL | 159.380 | ▲ 13.8 |
| AUG | 159.506 | ▲ 10.6 |
Congratulations on the growth Sarajevo. RJ would be a nice legacy airline to add.
ReplyDeleteWeren't they interested also in starting Zagreb route?
DeleteReally? When. I don't recall that.
DeleteThey weren't.
DeleteWould be nice if next year we had Qatar Airways, Gulf Air, Royal Jordanian and Kuwait Airways all flying to SJJ.
ReplyDeleteIf any of them materialize. They are all interested in Sarajevo but never start flights.
DeleteWell if Flydubai can make it 3 times per day, then I don't see why these others couldn't a couple of times per week.
DeleteWe need daily Emirates in summrs like Zagrab.
Delete+1 flights would be full. And then bring back Flydubai in winter.
DeleteWhat's the smallest aircraft they have in their fleet?
ReplyDeleteA319 - 110 seats.
Delete110 seats!?! Wow that's roomy for an A319.
DeleteWrong, they also have 5 Embraers which are ideal for the SJJ route.
DeleteHow many seats do the Embraers have? I agree they would be ideal for this route.
DeleteE175 - 72
DeleteE195 - 100
Thanks. That would be suitable capacity for SJJ.
DeleteCan the Embraer make it from Amman to Sarajevo?
DeleteYes easily.
DeleteYes. Air Moldova has a direct flight from KIV-LIS and they operate their E190 aircraft.
DeleteFB also flies SOF-AGP with their E190 jet.
No problem at all for RJ to fly SJJ-AMM.
Cool, then an Embraer E175 would make more sense then A319/320. Perhaps that way they could sustain the route during winter too.
DeleteThere would be no problem sustaining the route with an A320, judging by the amount of passengers that Sarajevo handles on a daily basis!
DeleteA320 would be fine in summer but to keep the route in winter, they could switch to E75 from November.
DeleteThis would be interesting since they are a oneworld airline. If I'm correct QR is the only other oneworld operator at Sarajevo.
ReplyDeleteOdlicna kompanija i jako zanimljiva destinacija
ReplyDeleteDa.
DeleteWho knows how things would have worked out had they won the BH tender.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure things would've worked out the same as with Turkish because of the corrupt and incapable government.
DeleteThis could affect those Jordan flights from Mostar.
ReplyDeleteWhich Jordan flights from Mostar? I know nothing about it. Only flights from OMO to that part of the World I know of are to Beirut, Lebanon.
DeleteIt started a few months ago - Jordan Aviation. But even though it says in the text that flights will operate until mid-October I think they have been cancelled long ago (not surprising since it says they had 35 passengers on the inaugural)
Deletehttps://www.klix.ba/biznis/mostar-zracnom-linijom-povezan-s-ammanom-cijena-povratnog-leta-izmedju-345-i-450-eura/180618038
Thanks. Had no info about it.
DeleteI don't blame you, I think it lasted 2 or 3 weeks :D unfortunately...
DeleteI know this is RJA to SJJ topic, but just for accuracy and details, which is missing here very often, the name of the airline is Fly Jordan and not Jordan aviation, which is defunct. The flights did not last only 2 or 3 three weeks and they were operated by B-737-300 once a week (Monday) - both JY-SOA and JY-SOB were used. The first flight was on 18 Jun 2018 and the last one was flown on 27 Aug 2018.
Delete[S.K.]
I work at the customs in OMO, and flights to Amman were good, in total FlyJordan operated 10 roations to Mostar, and flights (except the inaugural one) were filled up to 80% LF, because inaugural flight was carying only press and airline representatives and some people from tourism board of Jordan to hold a newspress
DeleteStunning livery. Reminds me of NZ. Congrats BiH! :*
ReplyDeleteGreat result for Sarajevo so far this year. I expect a million passengers to be reached in November.
ReplyDeleteWhich aircraft could they use on this route?
ReplyDeleteA319 or A320.
DeleteE-175s or E-195s as well.
DeleteWith just 110 seats on the A319 I assume they have quite a good business class product.
DeleteBravo Sarajevo!
ReplyDeleteThis would be a nice addition.
ReplyDeleteI hope this consideration becomes a reality.
ReplyDeleteOh WOW, I was just yesterday thinking how it would be great for Royal Jordanian to start flying to Sarajevo from Amman!!! This would be fantastic! :)
ReplyDeleteI just arrived to Amman today, no problems whatsoever getting the visa on arrival with the Bosnian passport, this would be a perfect addition to Sarajevo, and Jordan is amazing! :)
ReplyDeleteInteresting. Which airline did you use?
DeleteI'm also interested which airline you used. And you should write a trip report :)
DeleteI fly quite often to Amman due to work, I mainly use Turkish from Sarajevo to Amman. This time I used Alitalia, as I was in France on holidays, so I had a connecting flight in Rome. Sorry, I promise next time there will be a trip report :)
DeleteLooking forward to it. What's Amman like? Worth a visit?
DeleteThanks! Hmmm, not really much to see in Amman itself, there is the citadelle and few other sites. But definitely connect it to the visit to the Dead Sea, Red Sea (Aqaba), PETRA, and Wadi Rum. Then the trip to Amman would very much make sense, but you would need at least a whole week to visit everything :)
DeleteIs there any chance we see any AQJ flights to ex-Yu? I read that Aqaba is much better than Eilat when it comes to beaches and product...
DeleteThis would be a nice catch for Sarajevo.
ReplyDeleteThis would be great for Sarajevo. I still remember their planes landing in Belgrade in the 1980s :)
ReplyDeleteIt would be best if these flights were actually operated by Royal Jordanian's low cost subsidiary Royal Wings.
ReplyDeleteRoyal Wings flew to Belgrade in summer 2008 once per week. Unfortunately they never came back.
DeleteDidn't know that. I remember Jat Airways used to have summer charters to Aqaba between 2008-2013.
DeleteHow many Jordanian visitors visited BiH and vice versa?
ReplyDeleteI think like a lot!!
DeleteLike less than 10k.
DeleteThanks a lot, that's not a very small figure...
DeleteGood. So for next year we have Aegean confirmed and possibly Gulf Ait and RJ. Not bad.
ReplyDeleteKuwait Airways might come as well as a replacement for Wataniya. They used to fly a couple of years ago.
DeleteWhat's happening with the new terminal? Have they started construction yet?
ReplyDeleteNo. I think they just finished tenders and will start work in autumn.
DeleteGood results so far. Let's just hope for a mild and clear winter so it doesn't affect the airport.
ReplyDeleteSJJ - almost 1 million in 2018
ReplyDeleteTZL - almost 3/4 million in 2018 (higher than INI)
BNX - future 3 FR routes and ZAG alternative
OMO - arrival of OU and EW
One word: BiH rocks!
Браво ¡
Actually SJJ will be more than 1 million in 2018, not almost 1 million :)
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