Air Serbia aims for full recovery by 2023


Air Serbia expects to return to pre-pandemic levels by 2023, the airline’s Supervisory Board has said as its passenger performance and the average cabin occupancy index outpaced the industry average in Europe this year. The Chairman of the carrier’s Supervisory Board, Branislav Pejčić, said, “Air Serbia is rapidly recovering and aiming to achieve 2019 pre-pandemic levels by 2023. As a result, it plans to embark onto a phase of continuous growth as the leading regional airline. The carrier is a symbol of national pride and its continuous success is testament to its dedicated workforce, which has played a major role during the pandemic, enabling the sufficient flow of medical material, vaccines and the safe return of stranded citizens around the globe”.

As part of the airline’s planned growth next year, it will launch six new routes of public interest as of next week. Furthermore, it plans to renew its regional fleet with newer generation ATR aircraft. As EX-YU Aviation News learns, crew members have already started training for the incoming aircraft. Furthermore, the airline is considering restoring more destinations and making new additions to its Belgrade network. However, all plans are still contingent on the epidemiological situation. The company’s incoming CEO, Jiri Marek, who was yesterday named as the sixth most powerful foreigner in Serbia on the annual list, previously noted the airline would further develop its hub and spoke model once the company returned to pre-pandemic passenger levels.

Air Serbia carried over 1.5 million passengers from January until December, an improvement of 76% compared to the total number of travellers handled during the whole of 2020 when the figure stood at 899.877. However, passenger levels are still down 43% on the pre-pandemic 2019, which was Air Serbia’s busiest. Back then it welcomed 2.81 million travellers as it added 23 new routes to its network. The airline’s cabin load factor since the start of the year has averaged at 66%, while in 2019, loads stood at 73%. The carrier has not publicised its financial performance so far this year, with its annual financial result for 2021 not expected to be made public before July of next year. In 2020, the airline recorded a 77-million-euro loss.



Comments

  1. Anonymous09:02

    Sounds promising

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous09:04

    This would be ideal. New routes, new aircraft... Hope it happens.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:06

      But no long haul expansion it seems.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:11

      They will probably wait. I think they will first renew the regional fleet, and probably airbuses, and than acquire new a330.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12:08

      I doubt we will see long haul expansion until 2023 or even 2024.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous09:04

    They would have to add a million passengers next year to reach 2019 levels. Is that really realistic?

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:36

      No one expected such high numbers for 2020 summer season either, so I think it will not be a problem to reach 2019 numbers.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:37

      You mean 2021 ;)

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:42

      My bad... Years just fly by nowdays

      Delete
  4. Anonymous09:05

    Good luck

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous09:08

    some good news

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous09:10

    Congratulations Air Serbia

    ReplyDelete
  7. Good news, but aren't all airlines in the world aim for full recovery in 2023??!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:10

      No, most expect it won't happen now until 2025.

      Delete
    2. @ANONYMOUS 09:10 says that who??!!!

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:32

      Actually Eurocontrol believes that in the best case scenario, airlines will reach pre-Covid levels in 2024 and exceed them in 2025.

      https://www.eurocontrol.int/press-release/new-eurocontrol-2021-2027-forecast-expects-traffic-recovery-2019-levels-end-2023

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    4. @ANONYMOUS 09:32 just because Eurocontrol says that that does not mean that all airlines will not make their effort for full recovery by 2023 as Air Serbia tries to!

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:05

      Ok...

      Delete
    6. Anonymous12:17

      Demand is there, it all depends from political decisions. It can take 5 years, it can take 5 months. No one knows

      Delete
  8. Anonymous09:12

    Regardless of what happens, it is encouraging that they have had a stronger tan expected year.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous09:12

    Which new routes could we see JU launch?

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:15

      My guess is another Russian destination, and also possible is Lviv, Tbilisi and Krakow.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:16

      Lisbon is a possibility too.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:30

      I think LIS could be a new route. Wizz announced it last year. Air Serbia could try and beat them to it. Plus I remember reading here that Lisbon is the busiest unserved European destination from Belgrade

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:33

      The issue with Lisbon is that it is a rather long rotation and I'm not sure they will have enough aircraft for a plane to be deployed on a route so long.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:38

      I think Vinci will also push for LIS since it is one of their biggest hubs in Europe.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:06

      I think so too and I believe they give some special discount for such routes. Like Belgrade-Lyon a few years ago.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous12:12

      Whatever new route they decide I hope they try and make it sustainable. There is no point in opening flights just for one season or one year (until the new airport you are flying to is incentivizing your operations).

      Delete
    8. JATBEGMEL12:55

      @09,33

      I think their network is more of a problem rather than aircraft. LIS is an 8 hour rotation. Connecting traffic should focus on destinations east of BEG and this is where the problem starts.

      If LIS leaves BEG at 6am, it is too early for the eastern arrival wave while the return is still after the midday wave. 7am gets the eastern arrival pax but arrives after the midday wave. Same with the an early evening departure.

      JU isn't an airline to solely focus on O&D pax. It'll have add more flights east to help boost loads for LIS in my opinion.

      Delete
  10. Anonymous09:12

    And which pre-Covid routes still haven't been restarted?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:15

      I mean the ones that they have not terminated for hood like HEL.

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    2. Anonymous09:16

      Cairo, Tel Aviv and Madrid.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:23

      They planned to resume some routes this winter like MAD and TLV but in the end, because of restrictions prolonged for next summer.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:18

      Can someone explain why they restored Barcelona but still haven't resumed Madrid? Madrid has the most relaxed approach to Covid in Spain with few restrictions. Compared to Barcelona which actually has a night time curfew.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:25

      Because there is more leisure demand for Barcelona. Both in summer and winter. MAD will be back next year.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous12:12

      They also haven't restored Venice yet. Wonder if it will come back next year. They haven't said it is being terminated.

      Delete
  11. Anonymous09:14

    Now the hard work begins for the new CEO. But I am glad he is development oriented and won't shy away from launching new routes if opportunity presents itself.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous09:17

    I wonder if the new ATRs will completely replace existing ATR fleet or they will keep some older birds complimentary to the new machines.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:18

      I think it will completely replace existing fleet.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous00:33

      Maybe the ATR72-500s will be kept. If they want to grow the regional network they will have to keep some.

      Delete
  13. Anonymous09:18

    A lot will also depend how strong next summer charter season is. This year was phenomenal thanks in part to lots of pent up demand, as well as people having paid for their package holiday last year and being moved to this year.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous00:33

      People will still want to go on holiday next year :)

      Delete
  14. Anonymous09:19

    Let's hope that this will be reflected in the financial results as well.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:27

      If they get new aircraft and expand network we probably won't see some stellar results because a lot of money will be invested in these things.

      Delete
  15. Anonymous09:22

    All things considered pretty good. Number of handled passengers exceeded my expectations.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous09:22

    How many passengers could they realistically handle next year on the PSO routes from Nis and Kraljevo?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:26

      Maybe 100,000 tops.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:27

      Do we know the total offered capacity?

      Delete
    3. JATBEGMEL13:32

      Roughly 119.000 seats will be offered just on the A319 flights, not including seasonal destinations. Another 41.000 on the ATR, again not including seasonal destinations. If they can get an average load of 60% just on these routes, its 96.000 pax.

      Delete
  17. Anonymous09:24

    It just shows the market will recover much faster than some expected once restrictions are slowly lifted.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous09:24

    Overall this year has turned out relatively well for JU.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous09:25

    Hope we see them expand next year.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:36

      We will. From next week they start new routes.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous12:11

      I meant other than PSO routes.

      Delete
  20. Anonymous09:26

    Good job, many airlines are in worse position than Air Serbia. Somebody is doing something right.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous09:29

    Let's see how their new battles with Wizz turn out next year on Rome, Barcelona and Nice flights.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:41

      Same way they (Jat) did on Rome years ago. But there is no Alitalia now so there is room for both.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:43

      I think they will actually coexist on BCN and FCO routes. Nice is another story and I think Wizz will fly one summer and won't resume it in 2023.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:44

      Why are they cannibalizing each other though with the same routes? There are still plenty of unserved high performing destinations that could be launched.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:17

      How can 2 completely different companies "cannibalize" each other?

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:18

      @Anon 9.43 don't forget that on Barcelona route they also compete against Vueling in the summer.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous12:07

      @ Anonymous10:17

      Because they will eat into each others passengers. P2P passengers will migrate to Wizz and JU will be left with transfers. No enough for either of them.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous12:19

      It's called "competition" not "cannibalization".

      Delete
  22. Anonymous09:35

    I'm glad regional fleet renewal is finally on the agenda but I'm wondering what they will do with Airbus fleet. This summer they did not have enough Airbuses in peak season. The Boeings are also gone. Assuming next summer will be better than this one, they will have to do something. I'm assuming wet-leasing planes during peak months isn't their long term solution.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous09:37

    Bravo Dunkan!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Anonymous09:40

    Goodness, 2020 was such a disaster. Under 900,000 passengers.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Anonymous09:41

    My guess is they will have around 1.6-1.7 million passengers this year.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:42

      If they had 1.5 million until the start of December, it is impossible they will have 1.7 by the end of it. Especially since they have under 200,000 seats available in December
      https://www.exyuaviation.com/2021/11/air-serbia-and-croatia-airlines-plan.html

      Delete
  26. Anonymous09:45

    After securing those recent 24 million euros to fly secondary routes, it will be easier to recover. I would not make any plans because of the current volatile worldwide virus situation. The world will never be the same again and so will travel and especially business travel as there is a newborn business norm and protocol.
    Serbia should focus on leisure, charter and gasto routes from now on....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous12:06

      I don't think JU particularly focused on business travelers. But transfer traffic will continue to exist as was the case up until now and it will be an important segment of JU's business model.

      Delete
  27. Anonymous09:51

    They will need more planes next summer, that's for sure.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Anonymous09:52

    They should consider some new charter destinations as well.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:59

      It's up to tour operators not JU.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous17:51

      Malaga and Catania would be much appreciated.

      Delete
  29. Anonymous10:17

    They need extra planes ASAP.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:26

      They are getting more planes for next year.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:52

      Let's hope it's not Smartwings wet leased equipment.

      Delete
  30. Anonymous10:26

    Good to see Air Serbia reacted on that increased demand.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Anonymous10:41

    With steady income guaranteed by the state in their back I am looking forward to seeing the results. They will be positive for sure!

    ReplyDelete
  32. Anonymous10:53

    Once this crisis is over Air Serbia will grow much more and become much more significant player in wider region.

    ReplyDelete
  33. Anonymous11:03

    Well as Fly Bosnia is even making a comeback in 2022 with flights to Zurich and Geneva, I'm sure the whole Aviation sector will be recovering quickly. Air Serbia will grow rapidly whilst OU will say it's too early to react.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Anonymous11:20

    Seems like 2022 will be an exciting year for Air Serbia.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Nemjee11:21

    Let's be honest, the only reason why they have so much room for optimism is because the Serbian government understood relatively quickly that any prolonged lockdown would destroy our already fragile economy. Strict curfew lasted less than two months and since then measures have been rather realistic.

    Serbian economy managed to sail through COVID relatively unscathed which is why demand remained (relatively) high. An extremely strong charter season helped them get access to a lot of healthy capital which further consolidated their operations.

    Look at what's going on in the West. They are spinning out of control with constant changes related to entry requirements and whatnot.
    On the other hand, Serbia has made sure entry requirements are pretty straightforward with its key markets such as Turkey, Egypt, Russia, Montenegro, Greece ... which is why demand for these destinations has remained high.

    Air Serbia and BEG will enter the post-COVID world in a much better shape than most of their competitors. This is a fantastic opportunity for both.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous12:04

      +100

      Delete
    2. Anonymous13:23

      Pretty much the situation is the same with many Eastern European countries.

      Delete
  36. Anonymous12:07

    Do pilots need to be retrained to move from ATR-200/500 to ATR72-600?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous12:09

      Yes that's why JU crew is already in training. -600 version has glass cockpit.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous12:55

      I can't wait to see what the cabin will look like. Hopefully they put in slim seats.

      Delete
  37. Anonymous12:08

    The big unknown is omicron and how it will impact air travel. At the moment airline are really being hit hard again.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Anonymous12:09

    If crew is already in training for new regional props does that mean they are soon coming to Air Serbia?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous12:13

      Yes, surprisingly soon :)

      Delete
  39. Anonymous13:26

    I see in the comments that JU ordered ATR72-600 (probably four or five). Honestly that's the most important thing for me, and also they need one more A320 asap !

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Agree about new ATRs but believe one 321 would be better choice than another 320 taking into account success on charters

      Delete
    2. Avionlet17:22

      I think that they should lease an A321 by power by the hour, it will most probably be used a lot during the summer season for charters and most probably on only a few flights during the winter. They should get another A320 and 2 extra A319s so they could replace API, APJ and prepare for extra demand.

      Delete
  40. Anonymous19:21

    Looks like another infinite delay for Air Serbia long haul. Tarom got ATR72 600 but it didn't help them launch long haul. Same outcome is to be expected for Air Serbia.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous20:52

      JU launched long haul with ancient ATR 72-200. Air Serbia > Tarom

      Delete
    2. Anonymous23:24

      True, Air Serbia did launch with 72-200 in the fleet but that's not the point.

      Current messaging about Air Serbia focus on replacing prop fleet and expanding regional destinations as part of a wider narrative about Air Serbia getting stronger doesn't sequentially lead to Air Serbia expansion of long haul destinations. Having ATR 72-600 and new regional destinations will not automatically empower Air Serbia to launch Toronto or Chicago. All those other efforts are okay but long haul expansion has to be run as a parallel project, without dependency on ATRs or regional expansion.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous01:11

      And who said that the new ATRs will enable long haul expansion?

      Delete
  41. Anonymous20:48

    No need to get all verklempt over Air Serbia switch to newer ATRs. ATR 600 series was already technological underachiever when introduced 14 years ago. At that time design choices were made by manufacturer to minimize spend/risk and maximize returns for key investors. Air Serbia switch to 600 fleet was obvious and long overdue move.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous00:47

      Agree. Can't wait for newer props to arrive.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous04:13

      Do we have any info about the new ATR arrivals?

      Delete
    3. Anonymous08:50

      Read the article

      Delete

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