Wizz Air satisfied with Belgrade performance


Low cost carrier Wizz Air has seen its passenger numbers increase in Serbia during 2019 despite limited network growth throughout the year. The budget airline handled over 895.000 travellers on flights to and from Belgrade and Niš, representing an increase of 11.9% on 2018. It added over 95.000 passengers. The airline held an 11% passenger share in the country and was the busiest low cost carrier in Serbia in 2019 with over 50% of the market, well ahead of Ryanair in second place and easyJet in third. Furthermore, it was the second busiest airline in the country overall, behind only Air Serbia but ahead of Lufthansa.

Wizz Air has not scheduled any notable network growth in Serbia for the upcoming summer season. The airline has terminated its seasonal two weekly service between Belgrade and Lyon which was launched last summer while services between the Serbian capital and Stockholm Skavsta will be reduced from three to two flights per week. On the other hand, the airline will boost operations from Nikola Tesla Airport to both Basel and Baden Baden from two to three weekly. Last month, Wizz Air noted it carried over five million passengers from Serbia since launching services to the country in 2010. It currently has two aircraft based in Belgrade and maintains thirteen routes to seven countries to and from the Serbian capital, as well as five routes to four countries to and from Niš.

Wizz Air’s Corporate Communications Manager, Paulina Gosk, said, “We are satisfied with the results we have had in this past year in Belgrade, but also with the reception we have had since we opened our services in that important airport in the Balkans”. However, the low cost carrier has previously said that high airport costs and government protectionism of Air Serbia are preventing it from developing its Belgrade base. Airport operator VINCI has said it will keep Belgrade's fees unchanged for the first three years of its 25-year concession. However, the operator can make changes to the airport's incentive plan.




Comments

  1. Anonymous09:02

    Basically W6 does not care about the BEG market or its performance.
    They are more concerned about fighting with FR for every village in Poland.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:21

      +1
      And now in Ukraine too.

      Delete
    2. the remark about ukraine doesn't make any sense at all..

      Delete
    3. Dejan11:31

      W6 and FR are now fighting for the Ukraine market. Like they do with Poland and Bulgaria.

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:09

    Their result ism't bad at all considering they added just one new route last year (and didn't they cut one from Nis?)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:10

      *isn't

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:15

      But didn't they add some frequencies last year? They also increased capacity on London route to A321.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous09:09

    I really hope they expand soon. With Air Serbia growing there are fewer and fewer routes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:12

      I agree. With JU's recent expansions, Wizz's future network from BEG has been severely limited.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:13

      Why? You think Wizz could not compete against Air Serbia on flights to Barcelona for example?

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:23

      Wizz has a much lower cost base than JU and so they could compete pretty much everywhere they are allowed to fly but they seem to not be interested at all in our market.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:27

      Well they are competing with JU in LCA and they have not defeated them, quite the opposite, JU is increasing LCA to 9 this summer. Same thing with Malta, JU is still operating their flights despite Wizz Air increasing it last year. So JU is not such an easy target for Wizz Air. After all, Wizz Air did not destroy BT, RO, FB, OS... so why would they destroy JU?

      Delete
    5. BT, RO, FB are concerned about things like CASK and RASK even less than JU. OS is in the fight of their life right now in VIE and they have mama Lufti to back them up.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:04

      Doesn't matter what they are concerned about, point is that Wizz Air is not some undefeated God. Airlines have learned how to adapt to their tricks.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous11:27

      Air Serbia doesn’t deal well with competition. They suspended WAW, they suspended IST due to competition (only realucnhed recently) they even suspended Malta due to Wizz Air but then figured a year later they might actually try and compete.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous11:28

      Well they did say they see LCCs as their main concern and competition.
      https://www.exyuaviation.com/2019/11/air-serbia-sees-lcc-competition-as-key.html

      Delete
    9. Anonymous11:34

      Anon at 10:04
      Your post makes no sense. How can these airlines care about route profitability when the state is always there to cover their loses?

      Delete
    10. Anonymous19:39

      You mean the same way Indigo was there to cover Wizz Air's losses for well over a decade? Each side supports and defends its interests.

      Delete
  4. Anonymous09:11

    Would be fantastic if they added Vienna - Belgrade or Bratislava - Belgrade.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:13

      But could they really sustain VIE-BEG and VIE-INI?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:23

      That would be bad news for both OS and JU.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:27

      But great for consumers which is most improtant.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:38

      There is a reason why they are not launching VIE-BEG, they know they couldn't compete in a fare war as JU and OS offer a much better schedule. Wizz Air would need at least daily flights in a split schedule which I don't see happening.

      If Wizz Air was smart, they would use this opportunity to launch BEG-VLC and steal a market from JU. Demand is there but unfortunately JU did not have enough aircraft for it.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:47

      What market is there between BEG and VLC ?

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:03

      Agreed !!!
      Once they introduce Vienna, numbers will rise non stop, i think there’s a huge demand for at least one flight daily. I‘m pretty sure that they‘ve considered in the past this route, but unfortunately serbo/austrian duopoly is sabotaging them...
      Bratislava is also an amazing back-up option, i hope they’ll rethink their market strategies (doin nothing) and start to fight for their customers at BEG cause its getting serious !

      Delete
    7. Anonymous10:04

      Tourists. Don't forget that BEG got charters to Morocco the moment FR discontinued flights from BUD.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous11:24

      I agree with other commentators. Wizz should try Vienna from BEG and attack the Austrian/Air Serbia monopoly and the woeful equipment both of them send on these flights most of the time.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous11:25

      Last time an airline tried that (Niki) they failed big time. Back then Austrian/Jat jointly slashed prices on the route and squeezed them out. But you are right. They do work together as monopolists on this route.

      Delete
    10. Mark20:44

      Back than JU and OS were much wiser choice as you had everything included with your ticket, nowadays I don’t really see what would be their selling point?

      Delete
  5. Anonymous09:12

    Anyone know their busiest route from Belgrade?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:32

      I think the route they have the most frequencies to is the one they have most passengers on.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:38

      Which is?

      Delete
    3. Should be MMX.

      Delete
  6. Anonymous09:14

    Wizz is taking over at TIA. So no planes for routes elsewhere. Quite possible that Wizz will be the busiest airline at TIA in 2020.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:28

      Wizz has like 200 planes on order. They have enough for future growth.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:49

      W6 has slowed the introduction of new aircraft over the next three years.
      They are not interested in expansion for expansion's sake, they are interested in remaining highly profitable.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:18

      lmao @9.49 they "slowed" because the A321 neos are being delayed ... sta sve procitas

      Continuing production issues of Airbus’s re-engined single-aisle aircraft have forced Wizz Air "to revise fleet growth plans, and the Central Eastern European low-cost carrier now anticipates receiving 14 fewer A321neo jets in the current and next financial year than scheduled a couple of months ago. The LCC is expecting to expand its fleet to 121 aircraft—all Airbus narrowbodies—by the end of March 2020 and to 134 units by the end of March 2021, according to Wizz Air’s updated fleet plan released on Wednesday. In July, Wizz Air still had anticipated growing the fleet to 123 and 145 aircraft, respectively. Estimated A321neo deliveries were scaled down from 12 to eight in the financial year ending March 31 and from 19 to nine in the financial year through March 2021."

      Delete
  7. Anonymous09:14

    If they keep going this way, in 2020 they will have less passengers than in 2019

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:50

      They have growth in the high teens percentage wise across their network.
      They are just ignoring our market.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:51

      12% growth for Serbian market is not bad at all.

      Delete
  8. Anonymous09:17

    Does anyone know which routes has Wizz tried from BEG which have been suspended and didn't work out for them?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:23

      Charleroi, Rome, Corfu, Rhodes, Sandefjord, Nuremberg, Friedrichshafen and now Lyon.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:32

      Italy seems a no go zone for LCCs from Serbia. Easyjet and Air One also failed on Belgrade-Milan route.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:39

      While JU thrives with flights to Milan, Rome, Venice and Florence, they will have like 20 weekly flights this summer.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:55

      Wizz is looking for 30% operation profitability. Simply not all routes can allow for it and i am pretty sure that other airlines flying on routes where Wizz cannot achieve the required profitability, dont get even close to that point, which would mean they are really thriving.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:05

      Point is that other airlines have managed to make routes work where Wizz Air failed. The point they didn't reach their target says more about them than anything else.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:19

      you cant really call JU's VCE performance in winter a success btw ;)

      Delete
    7. Anonymous10:20

      What does it mean for you to make a route work? To be able to serve it operationally? In 21st century that is not really an achievement or at least shouldnt be. Or do you know others were able to make the route work FINANCIALLY better that Wizz was able to. That would be an achievement worth promoting.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous10:56

      JU survived Italy due to the transfers, they do not solely rely ont p2p. This is a huge difference.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous19:40

      Anonymous12 February 2020 at 10:19

      Why not? It was increased this winter, that should indicate it's successful enough.

      Delete
  9. Anonymous09:18

    This summer Wizz will be using bus gates at BEG because part of air bridges won't be available due to expansion work.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous12:07

      Like in any other airport.

      Delete
  10. Anonymous09:22

    They care about their own profits. Not inflating an airport's passenger count.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:33

      Yeah VIE is the perfect example of them caring about profits ... lol

      Delete
    2. Anonymous14:50

      Yes because VIE is profitable for Wizz. There are official sources for that to find online.

      Delete
  11. Anonymous09:24

    The way this government is going they will probably declare all routes from BEG as PSO so no one can fly them except Air Serbia.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:27

      +1

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:39

      Yet there are no PSO routes from BEG at the moment.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:42

      Don't worry. They will think of it to show 2021 end of year profit for a certain airline.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:30

      Have you forgotten that ALL domestic routes in Croatia are PSO in last who knows how many years?

      In Serbia it is the case only for the flights from INI and KVO

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:34

      I have not forgotten. But what Croatia does with its PSO is of absolutely no interest to me. At least they subsidise flights where there is absolutely no interest for anyone else to operate them (and if they want to they still can unlike here)

      Delete
    6. Anonymous14:02

      Anon at 10:34
      I don't care what your interests are. Get Serbia into EU first and then complain.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous14:10

      Maybe you should calm down a bit and learn that not everyone has to have the same opinion as you about your favourite airline and government and the 14 half empty routes we are all giving money on.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous14:51

      Last anon +1!!!

      Delete
    9. Anonymous15:22

      14 empty routes? You mean the INI ones, or?

      Delete
    10. Anonymous16:18

      Empty but at least the kerosene is made in Serbia (NIS) ;)

      Delete
    11. Anonymous18:26

      Do you have the LF figures and share them with us ?
      How is W6 performing in INI?

      It seems that BEG-LYS was the shortest lasting W6 route ever.

      Delete
    12. Anonymous22:17

      Anon at 14:10, Wizz lost the battle for BEG. Wipe your tears and move on. There's Banja Luka, Zagreb, Tivat, Mostar...

      Delete
    13. Anonymous22:25

      How can it have lost a battle when it handled over 800.000 passengers, is the number 1 LCC in Serbia snd number 2 aorline in Serbia. Also what idiot would cheer for it to disappear. Instead of being happy that Belgrade has a strong national carrier and a strong low cost carrier you cheer for one to disappear.

      Delete
    14. Anonymous23:08

      He said they lost the battle in BEG, not Serbia.

      Delete
    15. Anonymous23:11

      They are the second largest airline in Belgrade with the third far behind. But keep cheering for them to disappear. At the same time you are cheering for fewer destinations, fewer choices, fewer passenger numbers at Belgrade Airport, fewer tourists... all because of an obsession with another airline. A normal person would hope both thrive.

      Delete
    16. Anonymous23:53

      Normal person would cheer for national airline to thrive, not some airline that takes all the profit away and doesn't invest one cent into local environmentt. Did Wizz invest in some local companies in Serbia or like Apple took all the profits to tax shelters like Ireland and offshore havens like Jersey? Wizz is not liked for a reason.

      Delete
    17. Anonymous00:03

      Wizz is not liked? Ask anyone on the street who they would rather fly with and everyone would say Wizz Air. It's you that hates it and are projecting that everyone else does as well.

      As for money, Air Serbia should be used as a last example of investing in anything. It's the entire country that invests into Air Serbia and Etihad.

      I don't hate either. I hope both have many more planes based in Belgrade because Wizz Air pays its fees (in full) in Belgrade, pays overflight tax in Serbia, pays Serbian employed staff and provides affordable prices.

      So yes you are a moron to wish they dissapear because of an unhealthy and concerning obsession

      Delete
  12. Anonymous09:32

    I really really hate flying with low cost carriers. Above %95 full seats and narrow seats always make me anxious and unhappy with flight overall. And they do everything to find a way to charge you with anything, check in, luggage, very expensive drinks and even water!

    I don't mind paying with a flag carrier as long as they are not more expensive than %30 than LCC. Seriously..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:33

      Other than water, Air Serbia charges you for absolutely everything.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:40

      JU doesn't charge you to board the plane via the airbridge for example. ;)

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:40

      Lol anon 0932...please!
      There are like 10% of carriers today in Europe that provide catering online and luggage included. We are becoming US version 2.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:43

      @9.40 (1) wizz has never charged me to use the passenger gate. Air Serbia does charge you 30 euros to check in at the airport though.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:07

      That's because you either had priority or you bought a seat until row 15 and not because Wizz Air charitable. JU doesn't charge you for having a handbag.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:20

      AirSerbia does not charge you 30eur...

      Delete
    7. Anonymous10:21

      It does. 30 EUR if flying out of BEG with the lowest tariff and you don't check in online.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous10:25

      @Anon 10:21 No, its not like that. Check your facts.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous10:26

      I have and it's exactly like I said.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous10:42

      No, you didn't.
      You go to check-in kiosk, and you do it there, at airport, for free.
      If you are not feeling comfortable with using kiosks (and by the way you are "checking facts" this might be a case) there is always nice lady/gentleman dressed in uniform, standing there and they will help you through the process.

      And even if you bought cheapest fare, and you for some reason skip online, skip kiosk, you go to check-in desk and insist to do it there (because, again, they will advice you to go to kiosks) - it will not be 30e, amount is changed long time ago.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous20:06

      Last time I checked Wizz Air also charges for airport check-in and it's €50. At least with JU you don't have to pay for handluggage.

      Delete
  13. Anonymous09:32

    I think it's a pity that the development of W6 in BEG is not more encouraged by VINCI or by GoS. Whilst it's clear they've chosen to do this development with JU instead of W6, I think there's a space for W6 in the Serbian market that doesn't necessarily compete with JU for the same market and can stimulate inbound tourism to Serbia which will bring in revenue for both GoS as well as the Serbian economy.

    They need to start targeting city break passengers from countries such as France, UK, Germany etc and offer schedules that cater to passengers wishing to have a cheap weekend away which BEG is ideal for. Gasto routes are great but I think they only have a limited amount of potential and this traffic is also highly seasonal and price sensitive. W6 being a LCC and charging for baggage (carryon as well as checkin) doesn't help here either.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:36

      +1

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:41

      Wizz Air has not been growing in BEG for a while now, Vinci knows this. They are blackmailing them so Vinci went with JU. Don't forget that right now legacy carriers are growing in Belgrade which is very interesting.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12:09

      Wizz Air only cares about bringing tourists to BUD, not to its competitor BEG.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous12:10

      That is one of the reasons Wizz Air ain't expanding.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous14:07

      It's a pity you are complaing about BEG where both Wizz and Easy operate, but you ignore the fact second largest airport in exyu region doesn't have any of them. There's your opportunity to grow.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous14:09

      Usual. When you run out of arguments you start talking about Croatia and Zagreb, like you did above with PSO routes.

      Delete
    7. Reply to: Gasto routes are great but I think they only have a limited amount of potential and this traffic is also highly seasonal and price sensitive.

      Gastro routes are less price sensitive than entire Serbian market.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous20:07

      Anon 14.09 he did provide you with arguments, read his reply more carefully.

      Delete
  14. Anonymous09:35

    There could be a possibility to include BEG from LED as they are now expanding there.
    Apparently there is hunger for Germany as FKB will be 3 weekly.
    Maybe they can consider SXF or LEJ?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:36

      Not so sure there is enough demand. Air Serbia flies there only seasonally.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:41

      Berlin along with Barcelona were their biggest missed opportunities in Belgrade.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:46

      Berlin is already covered by Easyjet on the LCC front.

      Delete
  15. Anonymous09:38

    Well if they are satisfied, good for them.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous09:40

    Didn't someone claim last month as a fact how JU and W6 have over 70% share in Belgrade and how that is not good. Obviously now we see this is not the case with JU having around 45% and Wizz 10%

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous09:42

    Wizz Air should launch Eilat flights and get subsidies from the Israeli side.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:45

      They can't launch it. It is subject to a bilateral air agreement. Only Serbian and Israeli companies allowed.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:17

      Subsidy is indeed very attractive at Eilat, but no-one can afford the hotel room there.
      Anyway, not a discussion for an airline in particular, they need the support of the big travel agencies in Belgrade to sell the packages, again, this isn't W6's strongest asset in Belgrade, which is why they are struggling...

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:00

      "no-one can afford the hotel room there"

      Please... There are rooms for as little as 5500 dinars per night in Eilat, if Bucharest, Warsaw, Sofia people can afford it, why not BEG people?

      Delete
    4. Anonymous12:11

      As little?!!

      Delete
    5. Anonymous14:05

      What do you expect, 20 EUR?
      Do you pay 20 EUR in Majorka or Halkidiki?

      Delete
    6. Anonymous14:54

      Been to Eilat? Eilat itself is so ugly. And treatment by Israelis on arrival is more than outrageous.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous14:54

      I don't expect anything. Israel is extremely expensive regardless of the cheap flights. I'd rather go to Sinai across the border and get 5 * hotel for the same price. No offense. I won't have to brag to my bros about how much i spent in Israel though. Seems that's your priority.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous14:55

      Oh wait, Israel charges you 30 Eur. to cross the border so i would just fly directly to Sharm or Hurghada. Xoxo ^ ^

      Delete
    9. Anonymous15:04

      If 30-50 EUR per night is too much I would urge you to stay home or spend your vacation in Zlatibor. No offense, I am just saying that there might be a market from BEG if there is one from SOF or OTP. Everybody has different priorities and apparently budget.

      TLV is also on the expensive side but also one of the coolest cities in the world.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous15:26

      As a matter of fact, I read in a Bulgarian forum that AQJ is much more prettier than ETM.
      The Jordanian coast is nicer and prices and service much better. But AQJ is FR territory.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous16:01

      Anon 15:26
      Been to both, I do not agree at all. AQB has a super filthy beach, it is really disgusting, no price tags anywhere, you have to negotiate for a coffee or you will find yourself paying more than in Israel in the end. The city itself dusty and quite poor, even for EE standards.
      The only good things about AQB are Petra and Wadi Rum which are simply amazing.

      ETM is clean, has cheap public transport that takes you anywhere, even to the Egyptian border, has coral beaches and some hotels with great value for money, especially in the winter.

      Delete
  18. Anonymous09:48

    They are quietly expanding in LGW too, which really surprises me given that they are LTN specialists. Maybe they surprise us with flights from LGW to INI as there is clearly not much demand to BEG,

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous09:49

    Well now that they know which routes Air Serbia might launch in the future (the ones that did not make the cut this year and that they stupidly loaded in the system a month ago with a schedule and all) they can introduce one of those.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous09:59

    Last summer season W6 used to operate three weekly flights to MLH (BSL) rather than two. During S19 they used to operate 42 weekly flights with planes based in Belgrade, plus 4 weekly with planes based in Luton. As for S20 they added only one flight weekly to FKB, while reducing overall four weekly flights to LYS, NYO and MMX. So they plan to operate overall 39 flights weekly with aircraft based at BEG.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous10:20

    Wizz says BEG is the problem yet almost all airlines that fly there are either staying the same or growing. BEG is not the problem, Wizz is.

    This year they are also going to use the BEG plane to operate some W pattern flights from DTM. I think TGD

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous11:25

    Why so many negative comments when this is positive news isn't it?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:46

      People hate that JU has to compete with W6. Or any other airline.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous14:12

      No, the reason is people are cheap. They want to fly all over Europe for 10 eur. Greta will kick their behinds.

      Delete
  23. Anonymous11:29

    At almost 900.000 passengers per year (and I assume at least 800.000 are for/to BEG) they certainly deserve to get some discounts from Belgrade Airport.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous14:16

      Deserve??? Did Wizz open pilot training center in Belgrade? Aircraft maintenance center? Call center? Headquarters? Did they at least register as a Serbian airline? No to all questions.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous15:32

      He's right, dear. BEG is one of the most expensive LCC airports and we all know they made a complain about this and even reduced the fleet. Remember?

      https://www.exyuaviation.com/2018/12/costs-and-protectionism-hindering-wizz.html

      Therefore the discounts must be applied if BEG wants more traffic and LCC.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous16:32

      Belgrade grew by 9% last year and had double digit growth in January so do they really need to give Wizz discounts? Hmm

      Delete
    4. Anonymous18:23

      Why not ensure a continuous double digit growth or maybe you want to ask SKP or DBV management about it ?

      Delete
    5. Anonymous20:10

      What continuous double digit growth? Vienna won't have it and neither will Sofia. Face it, without transfers all airports will plateau at some point in time. Long term, JU is a much better fit for BEG. Wizz has its purpose and that's to serve the gasto market and seems like two A320 is enough. After all, they ignored Barcelona so Vueling stepped in. They ignored Berlin easyJet stepped in. The airport is not the problem, Wizz Air is.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous22:09

      Ask SKP or DBV what? BEG has been increasing the gap over both airports. And Wizz cheerleaders failed to respond to any question from post at 14:16.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous22:57

      Ask SKP and DBV how they have been securing double digits for many years without stopping. They are a true example of sustainable, organic regional growth.
      New terminals built, new airlines arriving all the time, new bridges between nations constructed. That is how it is done.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous23:10

      The base from which they started was much lower than BEG's so it makes sense.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous23:44

      Double digits? That's relative. In absolute numbers, both lag BEG in adding passengers.

      New terminals built, new airlines arriving all the time, new bridges between nations constructed.

      LOL, new terminal is going to be built at BEG in the next couple of years that will put both SKP and DBV way behind in terms of pax capacity. New airlines are also arriving at BEG and have far more passengers (in absolute numbers and marketshare %) than non-Wizz airlines at SKP. Bridges between nations? LOL, Air Serbia added 10 new lines from BEG last year and is adding 6 more this year, doesn't that count as bridges between nations? BEG is well positioned to increase the gap this year over both DBV and SKP in 2020. That's how it's done without being under Wizzair's boot.

      Delete
  24. Anonymous13:05

    I'm not satisfied.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Anonymous16:32

    Air Serbia run the same way monopoly like JAT airways did for decades ..there is no to much room for any outsider's there .. Still remember bought with British airways 20 years ago return ticket to London £205.00 and JAT Airways were £385.00 no comment on that .. even these days looking into budget airline like wizzair price is most of the year 3 or 4 times less compare to Air Serbia .. There is no competitive market and definitely it will not be for a long time indeed ..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous16:34

      So how do you explain foreign airlines growing in BEG? Your comment is pure nonsense. Wizz pays next to nothing in SKP yet they charge about the same to Luton as they do from Belgrade.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous18:28

      He may want to explain it by saying that the growth of these airlines is relatively moderate (although definately existing), if one takes into account the number of flights per citizen compared to more developed markets and thus existing potential. Kiev grew 21% last year. Lviv grew 38% last year. Odessa grew 16%. Kharkiv grew 40%. Yes, you may give examples of airports with lower growth, but probably it is not in line with your predecessor's ambition.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous19:11

      Thank you for your input , correct . To put all numbers on side just a pure simple little fact. Flying from London to Belgrade with air Serbia in season ( even buying tickets in advance ) can be anywhere in range from £900.00-£ 1200.00 ( family of 3 - two adults and child 8 years old ) . Similar monopoly if I remember correctly had & have Greek " national" airline ..so common for over 20-25 years ...People need to fly, most will be keen to fly even more but with such a prices this becomes insane... Ryanair if I remember correctly got flight from Milan to Nis on similar dates last year for £45.00 per person .. Flying to Belgrade especially from & to London , Paris ,Moscow always were rip off and unfortunately stayed the same way .. there is no interest whatsoever in Air Serbia to do anything about it , Wizzair just took their chances and skimmed probably at least 40% of customers .

      Bucurest, Temisoara, Milan , Rome British airways welcoming you from £35.00 returns but Air Serbia at £235.00 ...any further talk is pure nonsense with same type of various excuses , fact.

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    4. Anonymous20:14

      I don't see what is the problem here. Air Serbia's London flights are packed all the time at those prices, why should they lower them? Wizz Air from Luton to Belgrade is also extremely expensive which is something you conveniently left out. Also where is BA 35 Pounds to/from? Maybe on one or two destinations where they face fierce competition, on all other ones they are crazy expensive while offering next to nothing onboard.

      Market dictates prices. Same way SU-JU or AF-JU or LH-JU or OS-JU or TK-JU did not lower them.

      Wizz Air is many things but cheap is not one of them unless they get subsidies or they face tough competition. Look at how many routes they cut from Sofia or Romania in recent times.

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    5. Anonymous20:48

      Maybe his worry was that too high airfares hinder economic growth? Would it be possible to have two daily, if the prices were more convenient? Compare prices to LHR from other cities, where there is no de facto monopoly, for example Vienna. This is just additional hidden charge on business, sort of private subsidy. And yes, business needs to travel so they have to digest and the flight is full. Next time double the taxes. Won't they pay? Sure.

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    6. Anonymous23:11

      JU wanted to add flights to LHR but they were turned down so if you want to blame someone then blame the airport, not the airline.

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  26. Anonymous20:42

    Yes they did cut but another budget airline jumped in = same prices .. Flights are packed because there is a only one flight per day if I am correct , people don't have to much choice indeed, I doubt they will walk instead from London or Belgrade . No one on Earth can't beat my opinion that London - Belgrade flight ticket ( in general ) should cost more than £ 115.00 . The reason why is triple or more is because they have a monopoly , nor only them but Wizzair, between the ONLY two available choice I assume people are going for less worse or whatever is preference ..at least £1200.00 + flight tickets for 2 adults and kid in summer season, Easter season or Xmas season + accommodation + pocket money etc I'll always go exotic or somewhere reasonable
    ... To repeat having monopoly no need to be smart to preach about what is black and what is a white ...

    And yes, market dictate prices you are absolutely right ,but market dictate prices on the market and what you pretend or don't know really is that there is no market in Belgrade but close circle with only two ( many years was one ) company playing ping pong - good and bad cop at expenses of thousands people traveling ..

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  27. Anonymous21:00

    At least Wizz has far better on time performance then Air Serbia - wow. Interesting article published today:
    Flight Delayed: Air Serbia Faces Capacity and Quality Questions
    https://balkaninsight.com/2020/02/12/flight-delayed-air-serbia-faces-capacity-and-quality-questions/

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous22:01

      Point to Point carriers have better performance than those offering hub connections because they don't have to wait for transfers, but "authors" failed to acknowledge this industry truth. Next, they used fr24 data which is known as unreliable. Why not pay for OAG's on time performance report, that's industry standard, not fr24. Next, they completely ignored the fact other hub carriers like LOT and Lufthansa have worse OTP score than Air Serbia. Then they used non-scientific poll with tiny sample of unhappy customers to distort the results. Crap propaganda article, shame on those who finance this type of hate.

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    2. Anonymous22:22

      Actually OTP depends on many factors, including some totally independent like primarily airport congestion or ATC delays. For this reason airlines that operate from/to congested airports tend to have worse OTP, the same about those that operate within/to/from/through congested airspace like most notably Germany. It has little to do with the hub model as in a developed hub model you cannot wait longer than really a couple of minutes for pax from a delayed flight. You don't want to escalate delays.

      The king of OTP in Europe is airbaltic as it operates from a not congested airport of RIX and mostly to non congested airports.

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    3. Anonymous23:10

      I absolutely agree that Wizzair is far better overall taking all facts in one . Air Serbia is joke the same way before were JAT Airways - pumping money from the budget and having radicoulos prices.. Everyone's over 40 years old well remember these times ..The same way now they are not taking money ( at least not that much ) from the republic budget but they sold cheaply their share for peanuts and still ripping off all travelers ... If I have to fly I'll always chose Wizzair vs AirSerbia because AirSerbia no matter what they fractionally think about themselves they are overall same as any other budget airline but 3 times more expensive ...The only good think always about EX - Yugoslavia and Serbia is they have one of best pilot's in the world but now these days and last 15 years most of them are gone elsewhere to make what they deserve instead of staying there and work for peanuts which is again nor their shame at all but the people running the show and thought they are smart ...

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    4. Anonymous23:17

      Last Anon, you are on an aviation portal so you should know there was never an airline called JAT Airways, it was either JAT Yugoslav Airlines or Jat Airways. Very simple. Authors of that atrocious article made the same mistake, maybe some research would be good before publishing aviation related articles.
      Furthermore, it's not just congested delays, there are also congested airspaces like the one over Hungary or the Alps. Hungarian ATC even threatened to strike because they were overworked. JU's flight to AMS might be on time but it has to sit at the airport waiting for the green light to take off.

      That whole article is a disaster and Balkan Insight should take it down in order to avoid further embarrassment. Hilarious how ZRH said that JU is not the most punctual airline but they are not the worst.lol
      Kind of destroys their whole argument.

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    5. Anonymous23:35

      Article also failed to research if new aircraft is joining the fleet to address capacity issues. All it takes is a simple glance at this site and they would know, one more ATR and one more A319 (possibly one CRJ as well) are joining. But they don't follow this site, or just want to present negative aspects.

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    6. Anonymous00:02

      The other day someone posted here about the negative reviews of JU delays and the SkyTrax page full of negative comments about people missing flights.
      Don't think that the article is using wrong language but rather correct facts.
      An airline having 20 planes cannot keep them flying all the time with such a tight schedule.
      If not, refer to the Vueling cancellations scandal from 2016

      https://english.elpais.com/elpais/2016/07/05/inenglish/1467728964_206041.html

      They expanded like crazy between 2015-2016 connecting Barcelona even to destinations like Cardiff. Summer came....and you have the results.
      Some summer holidays were doomed and people waiting for days to reach their final destination.

      Grow, but grow slow and apply the slower but safer OU model.

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