Ryanair begins EX-YU expansion with over forty new routes


Low cost carrier Ryanair will today launch operations to Zagreb, marking the start of its major expansion across the region, which will see it commence a record 41 new routes from the former Yugoslavia. The airline will open a seasonal base in Zadar next month and a year-round base in Zagreb at the end of August, introducing eighteen and fourteen new routes respectively. The carrier has indicated it further plans to expand its Zagreb operations as early as this winter with the stationing of a third aircraft and the launch of additional new destinations. Elsewhere, Ryanair will also commence new flights from Banja Luka, Tuzla, Niš, Pula and Podgorica.

Commenting on its upcoming Zagreb expansion, Ryanair said, “We are delighted to have announced Zagreb and so many new connections. It is a very underserved airport. Finally, low fares have arrived. We have done a good and sensible commercial deal with Zagreb so that we can grow even more. It is positive for Zagreb, Ryanair and our crew that will be working there. Hopefully, we will have even more routes launched in the summer of 2022”. The Zagreb Tourist Board noted, “The arrival of Ryanair in Zagreb is important for the development of tourism in the capital of Croatia and the whole country. It is logical to choose Zagreb as a year-round destination for a city break vacation. We welcome every new airline that comes to Zagreb and we will be glad to see the Ryanair tail among other companies that are already flying to our city”.



Inaugural Ryanair flight to Zagreb

Ryanair will also add a new airport to its destination network in the former Yugoslavia with the introduction of flights from Tuzla. The carrier will commence two routes from the city starting this September. The General Manager of Tuzla Airport, Esed Mujačić, said, “We are pleased to welcome Ryanair to Tuzla because we strongly believe that the Tuzla Canton and the entire Bosnia and Herzegovina market deserves even more low fares, which will now be available through Ryanair’s network. We are thankful to the Tuzla Canton Government, the Cantonal Ministry for Trade, Tourism and Transportation and members of the Airport Supervisory Board for the support provided during talks with Ryanair. We are looking forward to our cooperation with Ryanair and are thrilled to become part of the airline’s long-term expansion plans. We expect a strong, long, and fruitful collaboration in the years to come to the satisfaction of passengers traveling through Tuzla Airport. Further connectivity and more low fare flights from Tuzla will create more local jobs and help the local economy recover from Covid-19”.


Comments

  1. Anonymous09:02

    Ouch!

    Time for ex-yu carriers to consolidate and partner up. Wait, that will never happen...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:05

      We can't say all ex-yu airlines are in the same situation. Sorry.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:20

      Why should JU go for it? They have been fighting Wizz Air since 2009 so they found a way to coexist with them. Will OU be able to do the same?

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:42

      Of course not.

      Even without LCC in ZAG they struggled a lot. Now this is just cherry on a cake.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous16:13

      Anon 09:05h
      "all" ����
      2 is not all

      Delete
    5. Anonymous20:48

      2,5

      :-)

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:04

    Wonder which route will perform the best from ZAG.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous00:39

      Didn't they schedule the most frequencies to London? I think it has a high chance for success.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous09:05

    They are really putting the focus on the region finally. What's interesting is that most of their new routes are year-round.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous09:05

    And Slovenia is still the only EU country not served by Ryanair :(

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:06

      It will be served through ZAG.

      Delete
    2. JU520 BEGLAX09:55

      Anonym 0905h

      Bravo Slovenia !

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:57

      Bravo Slovenia with 1 or 2 flights per day!

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:22

      Yeah nit many flights, but the information slovenia is only country in europe without ryanair is very good. British airways was really succesful even tho easy jet already operated 3 routes to UK. So routes are succesful without lcc too.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous11:28

      Why did they fail in Slovenia anyway? They used to fly to Maribor right?

      Delete
    6. Anonymous11:30

      The subsidies ended in MBX and LJU is too expensive for them.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous11:38

      From MBX they could open Barcelona, Paris, London, Berlin, Memmingen...

      Delete
    8. Anonymous11:42

      Its too late now with Ryanair in ZAG.

      Delete
  5. Anonymous09:06

    So what happened with LJU reservation?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:07

      I assume you mean with the slots they filed from London to Ljubljana? They used it for another route.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous00:39

      Of course they did :(

      Delete
  6. Anonymous09:07

    I'm surprised they don't fly to PRN yet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:07

      Or SKP for that matter.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:10

      Skopje is Wizz territory.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:10

      They wanted to start flights to Skopje a few years ago. They held talks, everything was agreed and then Wizz suddenly launched all the routes Ryanair was about to announce.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:11

      No flights from BEG either.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:31

      Such a shame things didn't work out with Skopje. Not only would passenger numbers explode but there would a mix and choice between Wizz and Ryan and I assume Wizz would also try more.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous09:31

      @9.07 Extremely high fees, which are set by the government not the airport. Limak can't do much about it except offer subsidies like they do.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous09:33

      Neither TIA

      Delete
    8. Anonymous00:40

      Wonder why they haven't started TIA. Are fees high there?

      Delete
  7. Anonymous09:13

    Good luck. I hope their new Zagreb base works out.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous00:40

      Based on early bookings it will.

      Delete
  8. Anonymous09:15

    Waiting for Wizz Air's response

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:17

      W6 is launching around 30 new routes this summer. And they already have a much bigger presence than Ryanair in the region.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous00:41

      We saw them respond. For example when Ryan introduced Tuzla, Wizz introduced Banja Luka.

      Delete
  9. Anonymous09:16

    52 passengers booked flight to Charleroi from ZAG...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:21

      Not surprised, they said 90% of their bookings are from abroad.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous00:41

      What was the load on the incoming flight from Charleroi?

      Delete
    3. Anonymous06:56

      CRL-ZAG 67 pax
      ZAG-CRL 52 pax

      Delete
  10. Anonymous09:17

    Expansion? Banja Luka and Nis have been postponing for a year now. And now they have moved to the month of July. They are frivolous.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:19

      You might want to take into account the global pandemic and travel restrictions.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:22

      Almost all their Vienna flights have been postponed. It's not an ex-Yu thing.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:39

      I know it is a pandemic, but in Bosnia and Serbia, the situation with COVID is very good. For example. there are about 100 infected people in Bosnia every day. Serbia did a great job of vaccination. Both countries are still under EU ban.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:40

      The problem isn't the infection rate, it's the travel ban.

      Delete
    5. Not only travel ban. All foreigners must have negative PCR test to enter Bosnia and Herzegovina. It doesn't matter if someone is full vaccinated

      Delete
    6. Anonymous13:26

      It was also announced just now that from tomorrow citizens of Bosnia can get vaccinated anywhere in Serbia without an appointment. This is great news especially since they said the government lacks vaccines for revaccination.

      Delete
  11. Anonymous09:30

    14 new routes to ZAG are simply amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous09:30

    It's time for them to open a permanent base in Zadar.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:32

      Yes, year round base would be pretty good.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:32

      Yes that will make them a fortune in winter.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:35

      Is there enough demand during winter out of Zadar?

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:36

      It was written here that they said they would consider extending some routes into winter from Zadar if they perform well this summer.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous00:42

      Let's hope but other than some cities in Germany I don't see any other working on a year round basis.

      Delete
  13. Anonymous09:35

    I would love to be a fly on the wall in OU HQ today. I can imagine the mood there, like at a funeral.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:39

      True but what shocks me is that they have done nothing since Ryan announced their Zagreb base, other than complain in public.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:40

      They have actually reduced prices significantly on competing routes (on the days they compete with Ryanair)

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12:54

      OU lost money with the fares they had, imagine what will happen now.

      Delete
    4. OU is not losing money because of the fares, or type of services they operate, or composition and age of the fleet, or because of the size and potential of the market, or strong competition. Reasons why they lose money are CRIME, CORRUPTION, NEPOTISM, INDIFFERENCE AND INCOMPETENCE

      Delete
    5. Anonymous19:44

      Nonsense! OU is well managed now. It was as under Kucko that lasting damage was inflicted at OU, selling the Heathrow slots for starters.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous19:45

      ^ are you for real?

      Delete
    7. Hahahahahahahaha Hahahahahahahaha Hahahahahahahaha

      Delete
  14. Anonymous09:39

    It would be great if they started VIE-BEG

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous00:42

      Yes and finally end the JU/OS monopoly. But wishful thinking unfortunately.

      Delete
  15. Anonymous09:46

    I hope they eventually open a baae in INI

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous09:46

    Great news. I do hope Ryanair expands more in the region.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous09:48

    Any chance for them to open Dublin-Osijek?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:51

      I think Croatia Airlines tested this route around Christmas/New Year a couple of years ago and it didn't really work out.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:51

      Ryanair used to fly to Osijek. They pulled out a few years ago.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:56

      Typical FR.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:07

      How dare they fly higher-yielding routes. How dare they.

      Delete
  18. JU520 BEGLAX09:53

    I wish them bad luck and no success on our territory

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:08

      LCCs have done wonders for the travel industry.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous00:42

      Why are so many people against FR?

      Delete
  19. Anonymous10:04

    According to the SOF airport website, there will be 2 weekly FR flights ZAG-SOF in September. A blow to OU.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous10:12

    We will be seeing more and more of them in Croatia.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous10:22

    Wake up Ryan Air! they should launch to/from Pristina too same like Wizz Air, easyJet, Eurowings and others are operating to/from PRN. Ryan Air has very good chance if someone reminds Ryan Air about Pristina.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:25

      they should have used the chance when Ryanair decided against flying to Macedonia a few years ago.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:27

      That's true they should launch routes from anywhere in western EU to PRN all seasons.

      Delete
  22. Anonymous10:27

    I wish Ryanair good luck and a lot of pax! I hope to see further growth from other airports in ex-Yu.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous10:28

    Just keep away from LJU please.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:34

      Yeah because LJU does not need new routes and airlines :)

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:35

      Why??

      Delete
  24. Anonymous10:36

    Very interesting to see that Ryanair is using the new terminal in ZAG but is not using the air bridges.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:38

      They obviously didn't want to pay for them.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:41

      Boarding/disembarkation is actually faster on remote stands, as two exists can be used, which is very rarely the case with airbridges.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:44

      In Belgrade, Wizz Air uses the bridge and stairs. So those in the first half of the plane use the air bridge, while those in the second use the stairs.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous12:55

      Which makse sense since they charge more to sit in the first 15 rows.

      Delete
  25. Anonymous11:27

    How things change. Around 8 years ago Ryanair approached Zagreb. One of my friends who worked high in the management at the time told me the airport rejected them immediately because Ryanair was asking for too many concessions and they didn't want to have the situation Zadar where over 50% of traffic is coming from Ryanair.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Anonymous11:28

    Wizz Air is getting more and more some serious competition. Wizz was smart to enter this market early.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Anonymous11:59

    Saw the other day that WIZZ is opening a base at Rome Fiumicino FCO, so looking outside ex-yu, WIZZ is also attacking Ryan internationally....
    Would be interesting to see will WIZZ connect the region to Rome and also I potentially se WIZZ in Mostar OMO from Rome having in mind Medjugorje and.....Any thoughts on that someone???

    ReplyDelete
  28. Anonymous14:25

    Bad news, keep Ryanair out. They are doing a lot of long term damage to the aviation industry!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous14:57

      Yes by giving thousands of people the opportunity to fly and increasing tourism numbers in places most people have never heard of.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous15:57

      I'm not a Ryanair fan but I agree that small airports for whose name most people have never heard of - example - Nis, Osijek, Maribor - should pay them to fly there. If you want to get tourists you will have to give money to Ryanair to put it on the map.

      Delete
  29. Anonymous15:12

    LCC is cancer of airline industry. That was feed by communities they suppose to serve.
    Now they are under threat and will destroy parts of the markets in a bid to survive.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Vlad19:12

      I'm struggling to find any sense in what you're saying. Consumers have benefitted from LCC arrival in 95% of cases in Europe.

      Delete
  30. Ovo je za TZL dobra vjest,ali destinacije su mogle biti bolje...

    ReplyDelete

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