Ljubljana Airport urges for “crucial” airline incentives

Ljubljana Airport terminal building

Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport has again urged for the Slovenian government to provide incentives to airlines in order to encourage them to resume operations to the city. “Fraport Slovenija is pleased to see the return of a number of airlines, but also urges the state to provide assistance to renew and maintain Slovenia's network of air links, including the use of funds to promote Slovenia as a tourist destination, thus boosting tourism and the economy as well”, the operator said. So far, Air Serbia (Belgrade), Montenegro Airlines (Podgorica), Lufthansa (Frankfurt), Wizz Air (Charleroi), Transavia (Amsterdam), Air France (Paris), Turkish Airlines (Istanbul), LOT Polish Airlines (Warsaw) and easyJet (Berlin) have resumed operations to Ljubljana.

The Head of Airline Management at Ljubljana Airport, Janez Krašnja, noted, “The aviation industry has been hit hard by the health crisis. We are pleased that, despite the difficult conditions, airlines have returned to Ljubljana Airport. Maintaining existing connections and restoring the rest will be a challenge due to the continuing uncertain health situation in the world. Therefore, carriers are increasingly cautious and selective about which markets they enter”. He added, “We hope that the country, following the example of other European Union member states, will use funds to promote Slovenia in key markets to help restore its air connectivity which was accessible to local and foreign passengers prior to the pandemic. Such an incentive would be crucial for the recovery of the Slovenian tourism industry and the economy in general".

Ljubljana Airport previously floated the idea of a ten euro subsidy per passenger for airlines. Although the government is yet to respond to the initiative and has instead said it is negotiating with carriers, several other airlines plan to return to the Slovenian capital next month. They include Aeroflot, from mid-September, as well as Brussels Airlines and British Airways, while easyJet will resume operations from London. Windrose Airlines has again delayed the launch of its new service from Kiev, which is now scheduled to commence in mid-September. Israir’s new seasonal flights from Tel Aviv to Ljubljana are now scheduled to begin on September 1 but are only expected to run for a few weeks.

Comments

  1. Anonymous09:03

    I have a feeling that perhaps some LCC wants to start flights to LJU. They said they were in talks with a major airline from the region. So the push for these incentives might be for that. I mean the majority of airlines have resumed flights to Ljubljana.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:06

      Let's hope that's the reason.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:08

      Highly doubt Wiz is coming.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:23

      Wizz has cut many routes around Europe, doubt they are in expansion mode. Maybe they add one destination from another hub.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:48

      Wizz didn't cut that many routes. They simply postponed them until next year in destinations with low demand.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:02

      It could be for OU as well which held talks about opening a base.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:54

      @anon 09:03
      They are always in the talks with a major airline from the region.

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:08

    But people on here said that getting rid of JP was the best thing to happen to the airport and that others would rush to step in.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:11

      Do you realize that JP and Corona pandemic are two entirely different things?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:16

      You do realize that even before corona LJU struggled to attract new airlines? Look how long it took LH to come and OS never showed up to the party.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:23

      That should tell you something about the size of the market. But throwing tens of millions of Euros every year to a national airline during normal times and way more than that during a global crisis like we are experiencing now is your solution?
      LOL!

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:29

      If it brings greater good then why not? I mean did Dubai have more demand than LJU back in 1985 when EK was established? I guess not. However they had a vision and a good management and they created what we call Emirates today.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:33

      There would be no Dubai without Emirates. Thinking right now, there is no imporant city in the world without a strong local airline.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:00

      LJU the Dubai of Europe! SMFH...
      Thinking right now, there is no strong local airline without a large and important city providing a market for it. Throwing money at it wont make Juliana or Slovenian market multiple times larger than it currently is.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous10:03

      *Ljubljana

      Delete
    8. Anonymous10:37

      Simple solution for Slovenia, Dubai style. Find oil, start pumping it and create a large hub in LJU and a nation carrier with a worldwide network.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous10:43

      Anonymous 10:37
      +1000

      Delete
    10. Anonymous10:50

      Well Dubai's oil only makes 1% of their economy. What they were able to do is turn Dubai into a business, tourist and transfer hub.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous10:51

      The geographical location helps of course :D

      Delete
    12. Anonymous10:59

      Fully agree with Anon 10:50.
      Ljubljana could become something between London, Paris and New York with strong business and tourism industries and therefore the new JP could be something like EK.

      Delete
    13. Some of you haven't taken their medication this morning, so it seems.

      Delete
    14. Anonymous11:44

      And these Ljubljanska Banka towers can be replaced by something like Burj Khalifa what will bring even more tourist to Ljubljana!!!!

      Delete
    15. Anonymous12:11

      Technically speaking LJU may become Dubai of Europe given its strategic location and the crossway between Trieste and Eastern Europe.
      The future of LJU is definitely long-haul focusing on North America and SE Asia + Japan and S.Korea.

      Delete
    16. Because that's all it takes: Being in strategic location.
      What was stopping LJU so far?

      Delete
    17. LJU the new intercontinental hub of Europe!
      And MBX the new European hub to China.
      All that is missing is the banana king!

      Delete
  3. Anonymous09:12

    Today isn't all that bad. 8 flights from LJU.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:15

      You are right. It could be worse... like Sarajevo with 4.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:23

      What flights are there from both today?

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:28

      Ljubljana:

      Amsterdam (Transavia), Samos (Trade Air), Frankfurt (Lufthansa), Podgorica (Montenegro Airlines), easyJet (Berlin), Warsaw (LOT), Paris (Air France), Belgrade (Air Serbia)

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:29

      Sarajevo:

      Vienna (Austrian) - 2 flights, Istanbul (Turkish Airlines), Zagreb (Croatia Airlines).

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:30

      Crazy how it's mostly to various hubs, I guess that says a lot about LJU as a market.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous09:43

      4/8 is not crazy. says more about the anonymous troll

      Delete
    7. Anonymous10:01

      You mean 5/8. To me it seems you are trolling here on purpose

      Delete
    8. Anonymous10:45

      somebody is considering Podgorica a hub? lol

      Delete
    9. Anonymous10:58

      8 today, 8 tomorrow, monday back to 5 (charters included)

      Delete
    10. Is there one extra day in your calendar between Sunday and Monday?
      Lucky!

      Delete
    11. Anonymous11:50

      oops, sorry :D today 8, tomorrow 8, Tuesday 5
      (it's aviation tho, time flies differently when you don't have weekends hehe)

      Delete
  4. Anonymous09:39

    I doubt Israir and Windrose will launch in the end.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:01

      Me too unfortunately. But Windrose is very persistent.

      Delete
  5. Anonymous09:39

    Will LH resume Munich?

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous09:45

    Still hoping OU have not given up plans basing an aircraft in LJU. This could be a beginning of a new chapter in the airline's history.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:02

      They've gone quiet about it...

      Delete
  7. Anonymous10:03

    Government does not seem interested to meet their demands.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:45

      In the end they will have to. They have no alternative.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:59

      sure they do

      Delete
  8. Anonymous10:03

    So Fraport wants financial assistance around terminal, financial assistance in attracting airlines, is against national carrier... Anything else?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:23

      If this is their attitude towards doing business, what was the Wishlist and demands towards JP?
      How much sucking of capital did they did when JP was still active?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:38

      Remember when LJU was forced to cover for JP's losses year after year?

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:04

      maybe if they did a wishlist and demands towards JP when there was time to do so, JP wouldn't go bust and LJU would be a hub
      and the right time to do so wasn't last summer, it was way before that

      Delete
    4. Anonymous12:24

      Anon 10:38: JP market share in LJU was 70% 5 year ago, slowly dropping down to 51% in last year.

      From where was LJU making profit if it was covering JP losses ?

      Delete
    5. Anonymous20:56

      @Anon 12:24: LJU had to buy one or two hangars from Adria, and later a large part of Adria Tehnika, to pump money into JP. Of course back when all of that was state-owned.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous22:06

      Did you read the question?

      Delete
  9. Anonymous10:20

    They are close to a deal with a major airline to base the aircraft at LJU. They are getting golf airlines to operate to LJU.
    Why do they need additional funds, from what they say is operating at LJU (22 airlines).

    If everything they publish is true shouldn’t they have capacity problem and not financial one?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:48

      They have been singing the same tune for years.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous11:06

      yup, that song is one of those nobody wants to admit they know it, but everybody knows it's lyrics

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:16

      I'm surprised honestly. I wouldn't expect that from Slovenian-German management.

      Delete
  10. Anonymous10:49

    Which airlines still have to return that haven't?

    ReplyDelete
  11. notLufthansa11:26

    Mr. Krašnja was head of operations in Adria, destroyed that, moved on to Aiport Ljubljana. The managment of this company is something to put in books....They were resisting for many years (belive me, I have first hand experience) to invest anything into airport development. They are all incompetent to the bone. I have no idea why Fraport doesn't intervene and does something.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:35

      if this is true it's not just Fraport who should intervene and Skobir and Krašnja &co. should be held responsible

      Delete
  12. Ask why so many people are using Venice airports for travel. The airport should offer incentives rather than begging the government for handouts.

    ReplyDelete

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