Ryanair enters Bosnian market


Europe's largest airline, Ryanair, entered the Bosnian market this morning by inaugurating flights between Stockholm Skavsta and Banja Luka, making it its fourth country of operation in the former Yugoslavia and 37th overall. The inaugural service this morning was sold out and will be followed up with the introduction of flights from Memmingen this afternoon and Charleroi on Friday. Ryanair's arrival in Banja Luka marks a major turning point for the airport, which has struggled to attract carriers and passengers alike. The no frills airline said it was pleased with the early performance of its new services to Banja Luka. "Even though we do not analyse our performance purely on a route-by-route basis, we are very pleased with the overall interest and a record number of advanced bookings", Ryanair said in a statement. A number of Banja Luka-bound flights around the New Year holidays have also been sold out.


Banja Luka Airport anticipates for the airline to carry some 100.000 passengers on the three routes within its first year of operations and create 75 on-site jobs. Željka Cvijanović, the Prime Minister of the Entity of Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina, of which Banja Luka is the largest city, said, "We are discussing with them [Ryanair] the introduction of two more routes next year. These are to markets in Austria and Switzerland". Banja Luka Airport's General Manager, Duško Kovačević, added, "We are very interested in adding other services as well, especially to Austria and Switzerland but also other destinations in Germany and Sweden. We will try and negotiate in the coming period, although it is ultimately up to the airline to make a final decision".


The General Manager previously said the airport was in talks with a further two well-established carriers but refused to reveal their names as the negotiating process was ongoing. Furthermore, the airport is in talks with Air Serbia over the introduction of charter flights to Thessaloniki next year following the success of this summer's one weekly charter service to Antalya. "Next year we will certainly have charters to Turkey again, while Greece is being seriously considered, although I would like Tivat to be added as well. In any case, we will even suggest to our partners at Ryanair to look into introducing flights to either Thessaloniki or Athens", Mr Kovačević said. He refused to comment whether Ryanair will receive subsidies for its operations to Bosnia and Herzegovina's second largest city. "Negotiations with low cost carriers are confidential. We cannot comment on the contract signed with Ryanair. The company obliges us to keep this information a business secret. If we were to reveal certain aspects of the agreement we risk Ryanair cancelling the contract altogether. What I can say is that, personally, I believe the agreement is very favourable for us".

Apart from Ryanair's new routes, the city will continue to be served by Air Serbia from Belgrade, which is maintaining two weekly flights to Banja Luka for most of the winter season, with an additional weekly service to run between mid-December and mid-January. Banja Luka Airport handled 17.767 passengers over the first three quarters, representing an increase of 5.8% compared to the same period in 2017. In June, the airport put an end to seven consecutive months of declining passenger numbers.

Comments

  1. Anonymous09:02

    Congratulations, this is an important day for Srpska as it will further boost its economy. Not to mention all the jobs that will be created.

    Wizz Air is probably regretting not adding flights first.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:23

      Long overdue. Good news for local citizens and diaspora.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:25

      it's an important day for Banja Luka and Bosnia if RS was less corumptive and the managment more competitive,years ago this will happens instead now and we will see if this is an economic or political contract !

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:28

      Yes, Ryanair is known for political contracts...

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:42

      If corruption is truly hindering the development of an airport then it's SJJ. Its a joke that such an airport in such a large catchment area doesn't handle one million passengers, actually it's a national disgrace. At least airports such as Tuzla and Banja Luka re being realistic and they know what kind of airlines their citizens needs.

      Sarajevo refuses to rationalize its aviation sector because then it would have to get rid of so many unnecessary people.

      Delete
    5. Whole BiH is full of Corruption

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:03

    Really happy for Banja Luka. This should really help them improve their results and could attract other airlines too.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous09:04

    Finally good news for BL.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous09:08

    I hope BNX will have a similar success story as Tuzla.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:15

      Or Nis.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:18

      Or SPU ;-)

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:20

      SPU doesn't fit in the same category as Tuzla, Nis or Banja Luka. Osijek could.

      Delete
  5. Anonymous09:11

    Good option would be daily Austrian to Vienna on Q400, which would add frequencies and open up tens on destinations, something that Ryan or Wizz can't offer.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:13

      Agree. Austrian used to fly to Banja Luka some 20 years ago.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:14

      Would be nice to see flights to Vienna resumed after so many years.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:41

      If Wizz Air was smart they should just launch Vienna-Banja Luka. Not only would it be a success, they would also have presence in BNX which gives them a better opportunity to compete against Ryanair.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:42

      Ryanair could dispatch Laudamotion too.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous20:50

      Not sure what OS strategy is to respond to Ryan & Wizz in eastern europe overall. They can compete on frequencies and destinations by flying to second tier airports ( INI, OMO, BNX, even LYKV someday). They have the fleet to do it. Old model of flying to major airports is not suitable any more.

      Delete
  6. Anonymous09:11

    Nice. Good times ahead for BNX?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:16

      absolutely- considering the prices FR offers, it must be really sustainable for them.

      Delete
  7. Anonymous09:12

    Fantastic news for Banja Luka. I see Laudamotion as possibly starting flights from Vienna, otherwise we might get Ryan from Bratislava.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous09:12

    This all could have been done much sooner, was there a political will but I'm glad it happened at all.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:16

      What a transformation for the airport after it changed its management.

      Delete
  9. Anonymous09:13

    It's actually that more and more regional airports are following INI's model.
    It's also good news for all the fellow ZAG people, who will also benefit from these flights, given the sometimes very high prices.
    Congratulations BNX!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:17

      Yes, you can book flights on Friday to CLR for 9€. Must be those ate the last ones before they are full :D

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:18

      BNX airport CEO said this morning that all tickets are promotional and under 30 euros for the first month. After that they will change based on occupancy.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:45

      Nice! So BNX dictates the Prices of FR? Good, FR certainly demanded something in turn ;)

      Delete
    4. Anonymous11:55

      No, it's part of the deal which Ryanair offers obviously to most airports. Same thing happened in Nis and in Podgorica when they started flying there. No need to be nasty all day.

      Delete
  10. Anonymous09:15

    Finally some low cost options to Banja Luka. I thought the day would never come.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous09:16

    I don't get it, how can BNX, TZL, INI... have winter flights to Stockholm but not LJU and ZAG? Is demand really not there?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:19

      Good point.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:23

      If you track any aviation news from those airports you will realize that there is nothing about demand in that story, and there is a lot of another things why ZAG and LJU does not have those flights.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:48

      Last Anon, care to explain as I don't get what you are trying to say.

      Delete
    4. Perhaps Zagreb and Ljubljana don't have as nearly big diaspora living in that area to be filling out the planes?

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:43

      Maybe but I am sure a two weekly could work, at leat from ZAG.


      Could a Q400 make it to ARN?

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:57

      ZAG ARN on the q400 would be like JA's flight to Copenhagen on the Atr. Lol

      Delete
    7. Anonymous11:52

      Price elasticity!!!!!!!!! For 9 EUR you can find 190 daily to ZAG. For 250€ starting price you cannot! There is a reason why WIZZ and RYANAIR fly to Skavsta, Charleroi, Hahn and other. The taxes at ZAG and ARN combined make 60 EUR which the AIRLINE collects on behalf of the AIrport.

      Delete
    8. Nemjee12:34

      €9 is a promotional price, it says so in the article. They started the same way when they launched INI.
      As time goes by fares will increase and if demand remains they will add more weekly frequencies.

      ZAG-ARN might have higher taxes but the flight would be used by those with higher purchasing power, the same way BEG-NYO didn't kill BEG-ARN. I think it's odd that there are no year-round ZAG-ARN flights. I am sure OU could fill two weekly flights with the A319 especially when they add connections from SKP, SJJ, DBV, SPU...

      It's no secret that BNX and ZAG serve overlapping catchment areas. OU should have kept ARN in winter as a tactical move. Like this they are forcing people to either connect via another hub for €400 or to fly our of BNX for much, much less. Don't forget that Transavia out of LJU affected ZAG-AMS numbers.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous13:01

      Please explain "Don't forget that Transavia out of LJU affected ZAG-AMS numbers".- so numbers please! (Capacity Change, Pax development, Price development)- all of which you have when you make such a claim!

      Delete
    10. Well, since the numbers for AMS from ZAG dropped a bit comparing to last year, it's not that hard to conclude that Transavia route affected AMS route at least for a bit. I personally wouldn't be flying out from the airport from the another country and dealing with the transportation and border crossing, but there are people that don't mind.

      Delete
    11. Nemjee13:21

      Frishki, neither would I but I know some people from Belgrade who went to Nis only to catch a Ryanair flight to Milan despite there being direct flights from BEG.
      As for ZAG-AMS, well, I think it has to do with Slovenes no longer heading to Zagreb to catch a flight.

      Anon 13.01

      I already posted some numbers, you have them on yesterday's topic so you can see for yourself.

      Delete
    12. Anonymous14:36

      Thanks Nemjee. Why would Slowenes head to ZAG to catch a flight to AMS when LJU-AMS on Adria is cheaper? Claiming that they now change because of Transavia would mean that Adria also loses Pax. This is just a friction of the reality. Nemjee, please provide us with the CAPACITY CHANGE at both LJU and ZAG and then put the PAX numbers next to it. Just because you THINK does not mean it is the truth.

      Delete
    13. Oh my lord dude, give it a rest.

      Delete
    14. Anonymous19:25

      "ZAG-ARN might have higher taxes but the flight would be used by those with higher purchasing power"

      This is a logical fallacy - a higher purchasing power doesn't imply the willingness to spend more on flights. One simply doesn't imply the other. I have friends all over Europe (we studied together) who make 3-4k EUR a month and all of them regularly fly low-cost.

      Likewise, I've already taken a couple of trips to Milan (Bergamo) from Niš despite living in Belgrade. Why would I pay Air Serbia 150-200€ p.p. when I can fly from Niš for 25€?

      Delete
    15. Anonymous19:30

      "Why would Slowenes head to ZAG to catch a flight to AMS when LJU-AMS on Adria is cheaper?"

      Perhaps they don't appreciate Adria's Tour de Europe via CDG or BRU :)

      Delete
    16. Nemjee19:42

      Anon 19.25

      To each his own, personally I am too lazy to go another city just because it's cheaper. However there are some people out there who do the exact opposite. Like I said, some friends of mine did the same thing as you did, they went to Nis to fly to Bergamo for €25.

      My point is that I believe OU should have kept on flying to ARN. The market should be there and they should defend their catchment area from FR in BNX.

      Delete
  12. Anonymous09:16

    Wonder which the two other airlones could be? Wizz and Easyjet?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:15

      I doubt its either.

      Delete
  13. Anonymous09:18

    If they keep growing traffic they will have to expand that tiny terminal soon.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous09:22

    This is a big turnaround. I'm very happy for Banja Luka.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Anonymous09:22

    All Bosnia needs now is Easy Jet. Maybe fore Mostar?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:26

      If they get their act together.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:26

      Mostar I mean obviously.

      Delete
  16. Anonymous09:27

    Swiss should consider Zurich!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:32

      It worked out well for them in INI.

      Delete
  17. Anonymous09:32

    Great news. I hope Ryanair's arrival makes a few other airlines take note.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous09:34

    Gasto routes but still nice development for BNX.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:38

      Nice to see that more charters will be added too.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:38

      I'm a bit surprised they went for Cherleroi. Are there a lot of gastos there from the area?

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:15

      I remember last year that Brussels Airlines said they were interested in flying Brussels-Sarajevo-Banja Luka. So there must be some demand.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:25

      There is a large Bosnian diaspora in Belgium. Many moved there during the war.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous14:27

      Can you expect something different than a gasto route to BNX? No. Of course not.
      Who will fly to and from BNX except them and few locals that can? No one. Not viable.
      Well done Ryanair!

      Delete
  19. Anonymous09:39

    Only European countries that Ryanair doesn't serve now are Slovenia, Albania, Macedonia, Iceland, Russia, Belarus and Moldova.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:43

      And the only EU country left is Slovenia. I don't understand why Fraport doesn't do something and attract them to Ljubljana, especially now when they are flying out of Frankfurt's main airport.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:55

      LJU is just too expensive. It's no secret.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:32

      you forgot to add Switzerland on your list.
      Slovenia has limited market for LCC.
      LJU keeps the bar above a decent standard.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous19:32

      Limited market... That's why GoOpti is loosing money by driving empty vans to BUD, TRS, TSF, BLQ and BGY?

      Delete
  20. Anonymous09:40

    I thought the day would never come.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous09:43

    Yay! Welcome FR.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous09:44

    100,000 in 2019 would be an amazing figure for an airport handling barely 20,000 pax. Fingers crossed.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous09:54

    Is there a possibility for Ryanair to eventually open a base in Banja Luka?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:57

      Let's not get ahead of ourselves and see how these routes perform first.

      Delete
  24. Anonymous09:56

    An LCC route to Greece like they are suggesting would be fantastic. There are none from ex-Yu.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Anonymous09:57

    Really don't get it why they would choose Banja Luka instead of SKP ....

    Can diaspora fill all those planes?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:02

      They got a better deal in Banja Luka and don't have to compete against Wizz Air.

      Delete
  26. Anonymous10:01

    And people were saying it was a political stunt in the election year and that flights won't materialize.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:44

      Well you can forgive them since so many times announced flights to BNX fell through.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:53

      It is a political thing: we have a freedom of information act, but they still found a way to hide how they spend our taxes

      we will not see the p&l of banja luka airport for years to come, because it is all party business

      Delete
  27. Anonymous10:10

    Tek ce da vam bude zao :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:14

      ?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous12:59

      Nemoj tako Mile, Dragan ti je sad najbolji drugar :)

      Delete
  28. Anonymous10:16

    I'm happy about Banja Luka because I think Ryanair's arrival is really a new beginning for them.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Anonymous10:22

    I'm waiting to see how Wizz Air will respond to Ryan in Banja Luka.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:42

      They responded by cutting a number of flights over winter.

      Delete
  30. Anonymous10:22

    Congrats

    ReplyDelete
  31. Anonymous10:24

    Memmingen is connected to every ex-yu town now :D

    ReplyDelete
  32. Anonymous10:31

    Fantastic developments for BNX.
    But clearly this is bad news for JU.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:42

      It would be worrisome if I day went by and something wasn't bad news for JU.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous11:38

      FR is starting multiple flights from an airport that ASL was the only airline serving it.
      If you think that it wontw affect them you must wear rose (or red) glasses! ��

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:44

      They fly there twice per week on an ATR72! Give me a break.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous13:21

      It would more hurt OU taking in consideration prices high prices in ZAG and low prices in BNX. It will become particularly important when FR develops wider network out of BNX

      Delete
    5. Anonymous13:39

      Seasonality is the result of people travelling much much much more in summer than in winter. In summer there is practically no single LCC that does not fly to Pula, Rijeka, Zadar, Ljubljana. Vast majority of ZAG passengers flying in summer and using FR and other LCC, from other croatian airports 2 hours away, in the same country. Of course there would always be situations where people from ZAG will use BNX, because of the day of the week, or slightly lower price, or in winter, or for some other reason, but as long as HR has that many LCC possibilities and such big offer in period when people travel the most, BNX will not hurt ZAG. Speaking of OU in ZAG, or JU in BEG, and compare it with FR in BNX is simply mixing apples and pears together as they are after completely differrent market segment.

      Delete
  33. Anonymous10:41

    Lidl enters Serbian market.
    Ryanair enters Bosnian market.
    So much progress... :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:08

      LOL! U centar! :) :) :)

      Delete
    2. Anonymous12:20

      Lidl entered Croatian market decade ago.
      So what?

      Delete
    3. He was being sarcastic, dude.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous13:15

      Exactly, he could have been sarcastic with the fact that Lidl is already located in Croatia for many years. Actually it could have made his sarcasm even stronger, dude.

      Delete
    5. Hahahahahahah anon@12:20 do u really compete about Lidl?!?!?!? #pathetic

      Delete
    6. Anonymous17:01

      you simply didn't get the point

      Delete
  34. Anonymous10:56

    Here are some photos from the inaugural flight. Seems like it is full on the way back too

    https://www.nezavisne.com/ekonomija/privreda/Prvi-avion-Ryanaira-sletio-na-banjalucki-aerodrom/505327

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:58

      Certainly looks like it :)
      https://galerija.nezavisne.rs/v/20181030094338075770.jpg

      Delete
  35. PutnikBLL11:08

    Just wonder how it would look with some Ryanair lines to/from Sarajevo. Many tourist could be the main passengers instead only focussing on our diaspora. Nothing against BL, but im sure that Sarajevo is a better tourist magnet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous13:17

      Obviously people from SJJ do not think so.
      No night flights, high charges etc. Working on that way you can't attract airlines, especially FR.

      Delete
    2. We don't need Ryanair in Sarajevo. We have proper airlines such as Austrian, Lufthansa, Air Serbia, Croatia Airlines e.t.c. who contribute to the economy rather then take money from the state!

      Delete
    3. Anonymous17:02

      Oh, this looks like virus from ZAG had been spreaded in SJJ too!

      Delete
  36. finally...
    I'm glad these first flights are full
    we expect to publish two more lines for the summer season soon!

    ReplyDelete
  37. Anonymous12:13

    Some exciting times ahead for Banja Luka airport.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Anonymous12:13

    Good to see that the charters helped boost numbers this summer.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Anonymous12:28

    Hopefully the strikes won't affect their operations in Bosnia.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Denis12:33

    Please in Future Frankfurt am Main or Frankfurt Hahn to Banja Luka

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nemjee12:38

      Or maybe BNX to Billund/Copenhagen/Malmo.

      Delete
    2. Agreed! Practically any German or Scandinavian bigger city can work for BNX and FR.

      Delete
  41. I would rather the government set up their own airline rather then subsidise Ryanair.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous14:32

      So they pay them to fly there. Sad.
      Will it work after the subsidized honeymoon?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous14:33

      Who said they are being paid to fly there? Get a life.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous16:27

      Purger did

      Delete
    4. Anonymous19:08

      He did? When?

      Delete
    5. Anonymous19:52

      T6 few weeks ago

      Delete
  42. Anonymous21:23

    Ex-Yu is it possible somehow to sort the posts in chronological order. It would facilitate greater engagement by being able to monitor the latest comments rather than having to go through all of them each time, some of which one may have seen multiple times.

    ReplyDelete

  43. is there some some additional information that the flight from Memmingema was filled?

    ReplyDelete
  44. Пошто мислим сви разумију српски, а да се неправимо енглези на Балкану, пишем на српском. Летио сам већ неколико пута на линији Меминген Бл. Авион је био скоро до краја попуњен. Карте су биле баш повољне. Лет траје сат времена. Само је лет 05.01.2019 из Мемингена за БЛ каснио око сат времена јер је требало времна да се очисти писта од снијега који је јако падао. Посада јако љубазна. Многи нису знали да се не може проћи гејт са личном картом, чак и швајцарском. Враћено је пар особа јер нису имали пасош. Пар мојих пријатеља из БЛ редовно користи нове линије и авиони су пуни. Прича се о линији Бл Лондон, Бл Беч а БЛ Москва је скоро готово договорено. Најављено је проширење терминала и полетно слетне писте. Исто тако након сваког лета постоји организован бус превоз за центар БЛ и за сваки лет из центра.

    ReplyDelete

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