Air Serbia to launch Rostov service


Air Serbia will introduce flights from Belgrade to Rostov-on-Don in Russia, making it its second new destination this year and the third overall launched since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Services will commence on June 4 and operate twice per week, departing Belgrade each Friday and Sunday, and Rostov each Monday and Friday, with the Airbus A319 aircraft. The airline initially planned to launch flights to the southern Russian city in 2020 but was forced to cancel them due to the global health emergency. In addition to Rostov, Air Serbia plans to restore operations to Krasnodar on June 4 and St Petersburg on June 8.

Air Serbia is relying both on transfer passengers and tourists on its new Rostov service. According to OAG data, in the pre-pandemic 2019 there were 1.436 travellers flying between the two cities on a single itinerary. The overwhelming majority, some 86% of passengers, flew with Aeroflot, followed by Turkish Airlines with 11% of the market and Belavia handling the remaining 3% of travellers. There have never been nonstop flights between the two cities, with Air Serbia codesharing on Aeroflot’s service between Moscow and Rostov. The city will become Air Serbia’s fourth destination in Russia following Moscow, St Petersburg and Krasnodar.

The Serbian carrier has been unable to restore flights to cities in Russia other than Moscow due to a government cap on flights and entry requirements. While both Serbian and Russian citizens can travel freely between the two with a negative PCR test, they must fly on the nonstop service between Belgrade and Moscow. Frequencies have also been limited to seven per week for airlines from each country. However, these limitations will be lifted by June in time for Air Serbia’s new flights. Since the Covid-19 outbreak, Air Serbia has added both Oslo and Geneva to its destination network.

Further details for the new Belgrade - Rostov service can be found here. Tickets are now available for purchase via the airline's website.



Comments

  1. Anonymous09:01

    Good to see that one by one routes that were planned for 2020 are being introduced.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:03

      Now we need Lviv for better regional coverage.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:03

      Maybe also some cities in Romania.

      Delete
    3. Nemjee09:11

      They also added a fifth flight to LCA from 07.06 which leaves BEG at 06.10 so it also offers connections from Russia. ROV actually connects quite well with Cyprus which is great news.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:17

      I'm waiting for Amman :D Jordan is open.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:20

      ^ Would be nice. It can be used both by tourists and transfers, especially now when connectivity across the board is generally low.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous11:41

      What are all the routes that were supposed to be introduced in 2020?

      Delete
    7. Anonymous11:45

      Geneva, Amman, Rostov-on-Don, Florence, Lviv, and Chisinau.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous11:53

      Thank you

      Delete
    9. Anonymous12:04

      I wonder which one could be next.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous12:12

      I'm guessing Lviv or Florence.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous14:20

      Please start Lviv!

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:02

    Good thing is that TK was blocked from ROV and LED so JU will have some breathing room. Plus with all the Russian tourists coming now they will have more passengers.

    Nice to see BEG-FCO back this morning.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:37

      Yeah, it's excellent for the customers that some airlines are blocked from running some routes.

      Who needs competition anyway.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous11:10

      Oh, so now we even have poor souls concerned about Russian customers on this blog.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:18

      Well who cares about TK as long as JU profits from them being blocked out of Russia.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous11:42

      Customers do because they have to pay more. If like yourself you don't travel, then indeed who cares.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous11:55

      How is that any different, you are making absolutely no sense. JU is replacing TK so there is little difference.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous11:56

      There is a difference. One offers new planes and good service, the other doesn't.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous13:01

      You obviously have never flew as you would know that servis AirSerbia offers is very good one. Turkish offers different service and we may agree it is better, but saying that AirSerbia does not offer good service is simply malicious and stupid!

      Delete
    8. JATBEGMEL14:15

      JU used to offer excellent service however they downsized this to something barely average.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous14:34

      TK offered a sandwich and water to ROV and nothing if you were connecting on a flight that was under two hours. Spectacular service.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous14:35

      FYI JU offers a product people were willing to pay for. If you want better book business class.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous14:37

      @14.34 flights under 2 hours get a meal and free drinks on TK. Just like between BEG and IST. On JU you get water and a cookie.

      Delete
    12. Anonymous14:42

      Flew on TK ten days ago and we got a small bottle of water.

      Delete
    13. Anonymous14:45

      Stop this JU hate right now! JU offers a better product than B2 or BT a whole bunch of Russian carriers that fly out of ROV or KRR starting with Nordwind that flies to BEG as well.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous09:05

    Unexpected but great to see

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:35

      Why unexpected? Demand for Russia was through the roof. Today alone there are four flights to SVO: A320, A330, A320 and A319.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous11:25

      Anon 9:35
      +100

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12:05

      Unexpected because it's a brand new market with no natural demand (only 1,436 travellers both ways in 2019!).

      But maybe the pandemic makes it worth trying, simply because the alternatives for where to deploy the aircraft are limited.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous14:43

      Right now in the air there are two Mitsubishi Challenger 860 and one Hawker 800 all flying from VKO to BEG. In addition to a JU A320 that's flying to BEG and JU A330 that's about to land in SVO. Quite a lot of movement between Moscow and Belgrade.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous16:06

      There is also a Russian IL-76 cargo flying to Anapa.

      https://www.flightradar24.com/AZS4030/2790e63b

      Delete
    6. Anonymous16:08

      What is there in Anapa? What kind of business is there between the two cities?

      Delete
    7. Anonymous19:51

      SVO in the morning 126-5/148-22

      SVO in the evening 92/114-12

      Delete
    8. Anonymous20:09

      Anon 16:08,

      There have been cargo flights from Anapa to Batajnica for a couple weeks. They are bringing Mig 29s and other peripheral equipment, parts, and supplies.

      Delete
  4. Anonymous09:05

    Yes, but departure from BEG at 20:30 is very odd if we look at JU's night vawe who's is after 11 pm

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:08

      It's scheduled so it can make it back to BEG by early morning the next day to connect onto their entire morning wave.

      Delete
    2. Nemjee09:12

      It could also be that they hope there will be Russian tourists visiting Serbia so they could fill those seats with O&D. Rostov oblast is home to over 4 million people.

      Delete
    3. JATBEGMEL12:24

      Interesting to note that the past 2 years they've started scheduling flights outside of the 'normal' waves. LCA, BNX, ZRH, CDG and now ROV.

      Btw, ROV also connects to JFK.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous13:03

      Finally.

      Delete
  5. Anonymous09:06

    Bravo JU

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous09:06

    The split schedule is perfect for tourists and transfers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:43

      It's the reason why they made it a split schedule :D

      Delete
  7. Anonymous09:12

    Good to see all Russia routes will be restored.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous13:06

      And not only restored but new routes launched.

      Delete
  8. Anonymous09:17

    It's great to see airlines adding routes in these codi times. Well done Air Serbia.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous09:18

    Interesting to see those traffic flows. Never would have thought people were using Turkish from BEG to get to Rostov.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous09:21

    Where are they finding the aircraft for these new routes and charters when they have 3 planes less?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:25

      Much less flying in general compared to 2019.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:25

      I guess frequencies are still down across the board so they can manage. But for next summer, I suspect they will have to grow the fleet.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12:13

      Definitely

      Delete
  11. Anonymous09:23

    How many frequencies did they schedule for this route before the pandemic?

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous09:25

    So what is next destination in Russia that could work? Sochi?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:26

      Aren't Sochi and Krasnodar very close?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:28

      290 km but no highway

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:28

      Ah didn't know. Then it may be a possibility.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:35

      Novosibirsk or Ekaterinburg would be a nice addition to the network, they both have a limited amount of flights to Europe.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:44

      JU codeshares to Ekaterinburg.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous09:49

      Plus the flight to Ekaterinburg would be longer so it could fit nicely between two European waves.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous09:55

      There's also Chelyabinsk.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous13:21

      There's also Omsk. And Samara, Nižnji Novgorod, Ufa, Krasnoyarsk... Voronjež, Volgograd...

      Plenty of big cities in Russia, but those south of Moscow, that need quite of a detour and circling while transfering, are the most appealing for JU.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous13:25

      Forgot about Kazan(j), it's among the bigger ones.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous14:47

      They should launch Anadyr as well.

      Delete
  13. Anonymous09:25

    Interesting choice during these Covid times.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:27

      Makes sense actually. No restrictions, growing tourism and transfer opportunities.

      Delete
  14. Anonymous09:27

    Well done Air Serbia.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Anonymous09:34

    Pretty cool day today. SOF and FCO are restored, bunch of charters, Rostov announced and two Conviasa A340 visited Belgrade.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:36

      There is also JU A330 to Moscow.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:05

      Wizz A321neo with 230 seats from Luton.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:50

      Wizz A321neo has 239 seats.
      The regular A321 has 230.

      Delete
  16. Anonymous09:44

    Great news. Keep on growing.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous09:45

    I'm not sure how well this will work in such conditions. I guess we will know after we see if they keep it in the winter.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:47

      Rostov is a huge city.

      Delete
  18. Anonymous09:48

    Good for P2P and Connecting potential

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous09:48

    Congrats on the proactive approach.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous09:52

    BRILLIANT! One of the best things about BEG is that it has been extremely versatile in adjusting demand and going where the money is.
    Never in the airport's history was there such a massive shift from West to East. Last couple of months we saw Belavia do well, two new airlines to KBP, boom on BEG-SVO with three airlines, IST frequencies boosted, charter expansion to Egypt, FZ boosting DXB around the holidays to 10 for the first time ever, Wizz adding AUH, now we get ROV and KRR is coming back...

    Basically so much expansion east of the Balkans. Really nice.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous09:59

    I don't understand why their LED flights are not year-round?

    ReplyDelete
  22. Nemjee10:02

    Tourism statistics are out for March.

    Russian arrivals
    March 2021: 3.339 (+78%)
    Jan-Mar 2021: 8.753 (-13%)

    Ukrainian arrivals
    March 2021: 522 (+129%)
    Jan-Mar 2021: 1.094 (-29%)

    Turkish arrivals
    March: 1.944 (+21%)
    Jan-Mar 2021: 4.882 (-49%)

    Hopefully these March numbers help us understand where all this additional demand is coming.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:07

      That's Jan-March vs what year?

      Delete
    2. Nemjee10:10

      Numbers are always compared to the same period last year.
      March 2021 vs March 2020

      Delete
  23. Anonymous10:05

    Prices?

    ReplyDelete
  24. Anonymous10:22

    Now all we need is for second A330 to arrive and to launch more flights to JFK and to launch China :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:29

      First try to replace old ATRs with new aircrafts and than we can talk about new long haul flights.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:41

      Why? That makes no sense. They should focus on where the market is. That's why they replaced 737 before ATRs

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:45

      Maybe because they are 30 years old.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous11:18

      Age doesn't mean they are unsafe to fly on.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous11:56

      Anon you don't have to worry. Brnabic was on tv just now and said that there will be xpansion of the fleet and the introduction of ORD and YYZ. She said second A330 will be called Pupin.

      Delete
    6. @Anon 11.56, where is that link, please ?

      Delete
    7. Anonymous16:57

      I couldn't find a link but it was filmed and shown on N1 today.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous17:44

      Na drugom A330 kada bude stigao u flotu trba staviti lik Novaka Đokovića.Gde god da avion bude leteo lik će biti prepoznat.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous18:26

      Нека хвала, већ смо се довољно избламирали са именом на А319. Други А332 који стиже следеће године носиће име и лик Пупина.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous20:45

      Van svake pameti je da na avionu nacionalnog avio prevoznika stoji lik predsednika strane države.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous21:07

      Van svake pameti je da si toliko neobrazovan da ne znas ko je Pupin.

      Delete
    12. Anonymous21:44

      :D :D :D

      Delete
    13. Anonymous22:16

      Hahahaha dobro sam se nasmejao, ali nemojte uzimati coveku za zlo, desi si se:)

      Covek prebrzo procitao Putin umesto Pupin..

      Delete
    14. Anonymous01:06

      Anon completely made it up. I watched the same show, it's Biz Info on N1. US ambassador said how he hopes Air Serbia will expand flights in North America and that future aircraft can bear the name of Pupin. Brnabic made no mention of any long haul expansion or additional aircraft. This was a recording from yesterday's A330 launch.

      Delete
    15. Anonymous07:46

      No, it was after that in the afternoon. It was just her.

      Delete
    16. Anonymous08:12

      It is not possible that it was after that in the afternoon as Anonymous wrote at 11:56AM that he just saw it.

      Delete
    17. Anonymous08:17

      I wrote that original comment and she was interviewed by N1 in the morning. It was just her speaking about the government being committed to new investments in JU. Just like no one reported that two days ago they also said on TV that JFK was JU's most profitable route.
      At the end of the day there will always be haters on here who will attack anything positive about JU. If we look back at JU and everything that happened it makes more sense for the government to get the second A330 than not to get it.

      Delete
    18. Anonymous08:27

      Basically you made it up. And no they didn't say it was one of the most profitable routes they said it was one of the most successful. Two different things.

      Delete
  25. Anonymous10:46

    It will be good to have INI SVO flight once per week.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:03

      +1

      Delete
    2. INI VKO would be better, with Pobeda. It would be the best match for Low Cost Nis airport.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous08:15

      In the future MOW-KVO will have the best chance because its the closest to the ski resorts of Kopaonik.

      Delete
  26. Anonymous10:51

    I really don't see how this is going to be profitable for them.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:25

      Excellent. Bravo JU!!!

      Delete
  27. Anonymous11:44

    Seems like OU and JU have very different approaches...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:46

      One is sleeping, the other is growing.

      Delete
  28. Anonymous17:00

    I like Air Serbia but I don't like this. You can open many new routes or even replace some old ATRs at the expense of killing off badly needed long haul expansion. When some of those short haul lines don't work as expected, like Helsinki or Budapest for example, you close them down and open a new one. It appears you are doing something important, but all you are doing is more damage by delaying the inevitable long haul expansion. Air Serbia does not seem to have commitment to long term planning needed for long haul expansion. Just a quick win here and there.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous17:09

      The better & bigger your regional/euro network, the more chances of success in long haul expansion.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous17:25

      That is a fallacy. Aegean has a vast network but no long haul.

      Long haul is about commitment. Create one or two new long haul destinations, THEN add/change destinations, frequency and timing or regional and Euro network to feed them.

      Air Serbia has lost touch when it comes to long term thinking. New A330 YU-ARB lease will expire in 2025. That year will mark TWO DECADES since LOT ordered a Dreamliner, airliner that was generation ahead of A330 with all carbon body, electric architecture and next generation, eco friendly engines. Twenty years!!!

      Delete
    3. Anonymous18:28

      Aegean doesn't have long-haul but is profitable.
      Air Serbia has long-haul but doesn't have a profit.

      Pretty clear IMHO

      Delete
    4. Anonymous18:45

      It is not a fallacy. A stronger feeder network can only HELP your long haul network, period. The fact the Aegean has a vast network but no long haul it their strategic decision. One fact does not negate the other.

      Air Serbia struggles financially in a relatively poor market, meaning Serbia and the Balkans, which is their primary market. I think they wish/plan to expand their long haul network to at least ORD & YYZ , but certain obstacles remain.

      I like the logic were you say in five years it will be two decades since ... so now it is FIFTEEN YEARS, not 20.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous19:40

      Waiting for Air Serbia to have a massive feeder network is now actively used to promote delay and cover inaction in regards to second A330. Beirut service was a good example, all you need is ONE good feed for your CDG service. JU's own JFK service was another, regional network at that time was sufficient to start. Growth of feeder network as a requirement just rings hollow.

      Logic for 787 vs A330 is actually tragic. Back in 2005 LOT realized replacement for old 767 is NOT A330, it is 787. In 2025 Air Serbia will still be flying A330, 20 years after LOT realized future does not belong to it. How long will it take for Air Serbia to make a long term commitment to order 2-3 of new generation long haul planes? In 2025 A321XLR will be flying East Coast US to SEE, Boeing will offer a brand new plane... and Air Serbia will still fly A330. That's like flying DC-3 when others are flying B707. Is this management afraid of commitment to long haul?

      Delete
    6. Anonymous21:30

      Maybe this management knows its company better than you? Maybe they see that they somehow have a chance to stabilise it financially with short haul flying, but the company cannot really stand another loss making long haul route?

      Maybe passengers on JU would not be willing to pay more to cover increased cost of leasing 787 instead of A330? You probably know 787 is still very much in demand, with many airlines thinking about downgrading capacity by flying 787 instead of 777. How do you think why pitch 32 on former JU A330 was changed into 30-32 on the recent one? Are these passengers after more comfort or after lower price? Don't you think that with A330 type being the first to be retired for many airlines, the leasing costs must have gone down significantly more than for other models?

      Delete
    7. Anonymous22:35

      Management mistakes are always visible in hindsight, once it's too late to rectify them. It just so happens some in the past could have been avoided simply by considering common sense or comments made in good faith. Future will rate current management.

      Single route long haul didn't work for CSA and didn't work in the long run for any airline unless you are special case such as remote island with one long haul connection to mainland. Either stop JFK or expand, current approach is not sustainable in the long run.

      Single Dreamliner vs A330 economics for BEG-JFK are a simple exercise. Balance changes when you commit to a long term ownership of a fleet that is also expected to fly longer routes. It's pointless as there is no commitment from JU.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous07:48

      I think you are trolling because you always come with the same long-haul arguments. It's best to ignore you because you always use the same flawed arguments on here. That JU is in trouble because they are not adding long-haul flights. Yes but they are an automatic guarantee for success. Look at DY and what it did to them.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous20:33

      Norwegian long haul didn't fly 2-3 dreamliners from Oslo to JFK, ORD or YYZ. If they did they would still be around. They flew from all over Europe to all over US.

      JU long haul is not yet in big trouble. It will be in a couple of years if/when AC and some of US3 start flying to BEG. It will be too late to talk about what Air Serbia should have done at that point, hence the discussion now. Vinci is not building 3 new widebody gates to use them just for narrowbodies. If JU won't step up someone else will. Look how ZAG protected OU for years and now unleashed FR against them.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous20:44

      Vinci is building now what it wants to exploit until the end of concession. So it has to be suficient for many years to come. Widebody gates may as well be used by narrowbody planes.

      I do not see US airlines starting diaspora routes to southern Europe, where price is everything and therefore JU goes for denser seats and older plane type. The biggest risk for JU is that in 10 years link with US diaspora will be much weaker and therefore travel more rare.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous21:32

      "I do not see US airlines starting diaspora routes to southern Europe"

      Of course you don't. News from 2019:

      United Airlines Sets a Course for the Future With Order of 50 Airbus A321XLR Aircraft. The state-of-the-art aircraft, which United expects to introduce into international service in 2024, will also allow United to explore serving additional destinations in Europe from its East Coast hubs in Newark/New York and Washington.

      American Airlines, the world’s largest airline, will acquire 50 Airbus A321XLR aircraft, the new longer-range version of Airbus’ hugely successful A321neo...So you can expect that the A321XLRs will primarily be based at New York JFK and Philadelphia, and from there they can fly virtually anywhere in Europe. I’d expect them to be flown to markets like Budapest, Dublin, Edinburgh, Manchester, Prague, etc.

      Delete
    12. Anonymous21:40

      This is what you would expect. Check range with denser seats. It changes nothing.

      Delete
    13. Anonymous22:15

      New York JFK and Philadelphia...to be flown to markets like Budapest. JFK-BEG is 50 miles more than PHL-BUD. Those planes for those markets will have denser seats, BUD is not LHR. Yeah I guess UA&AA knew exactly what they were ordering.

      If Vinci offers incentives they will come. Air Canada Rouge and Transat also know how to lower cost and pack leisure planes tight. If China eventually send a plane to BEG it will be too late for Air Serbia long haul.

      Delete
  29. Anonymous18:44


    It is not a fallacy. A stronger feeder network can only HELP your long haul network, period. The fact the Aegean has a vast network but no long haul it their strategic decision. One fact does not negate the other.

    Air Serbia struggles financially in a relatively poor market, meaning Serbia and the Balkans, which is their primary market. I think they wish/plan to expand their long haul network to at least ORD & YYZ , but certain obstacles remain.

    I like the logic were you say in five years it will be two decades since ... so now it is FIFTEEN YEARS, not 20.

    ReplyDelete

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