Mostar Airport, which shed over 17.000 passengers during the first three quarters of the year when compared to last, is exploring ways to turnabout its run of poor results. "In 2014 we positioned ourselves as a charter airport and had a very promising Italian partner - Mistral Air - which carried Italian travellers, primarily pilgrims visiting Medjugorje. Unfortunately, the company has gone bankrupt and the Italian market is now unserved", Mostar Airport's General Manager, Marin Raspudić, told the "Klix.ba" portal recently. Mistral Air is still in operation, however no longer maintains any scheduled or charter passenger flights, focusing purely on cargo services instead. During the first three quarters Mostar Airport handled 25.758 passengers, down 32.6% on 2017. Its figures have been in decline since 2016.

The airport believes a solution to its problems could be a concession. "Mostar Airport requires significant funds and investment. The Federal Ministry for Transport and Communication has allocated some resources which will be of use. However, we have to work harder on marketing and offer services at dumping prices. But if we provide dumping prices, the question is how will we make a living", Mr Raspudić said. The General Manager believes Mostar Airport "must find its path", adding that with Pope Francis recently naming a Polish archbishop as his apostolic visitor to Medjugorje for an indefinite period, the Polish market should open up. "We have to find a way for Mostar Airport to become an alternative to Sarajevo because it is difficult for us to compete against it, Dubrovnik and Split. Croatia is investing 65 million euros into the development of Split Airport, as well as 100 million into Dubrovnik, and we simply can't compete", Mr Raspudić said.

Despite a decline in passenger numbers at the airport, both Eurowings and Croatia Airlines launched services to Mostar this year. Eurowings has been maintaining seasonal summer flights from Dusseldorf and Stuttgart, while Croatia Airlines introduced year-round operations from Zagreb. The German low cost carrier has recorded solid loads on its flights to Mostar with an average cabin occupancy rate of over 90% on its Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft. "We will hold talks with the airline for it to potentially cover the Italian and Polish markets, as well as upgrade equipment on its existing routes", the General Manager noted. He added, "Croatia Airlines' flights to Zagreb are not as popular and we expected better loads. People are complaining about the flight schedule so we will try to find a way for that to be altered". Both airlines are being subsidised by local authorities. Mr Raspudić said that Turkish Airlines could launch flights from Istanbul to Mostar, but the route would also require financial incentives.