Belgrade Airport surpasses one million passengers in April


Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport has continued its recovery from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic by handling some 388.000 passengers in April, representing a decrease of 17% on the same month in 2019. The number of aircraft movements fell by the same margin. As a result, the airport has welcomed just over 1.130.800 travellers during the first four months of the year, down 25% on the record 2019, but almost three times more than last year. In 2021, the airport reached a million passengers only in July.

Over the coming days, the airport expects a surge in traffic as a result of the EuroLeague Final Four basketball tournament from May 19 until May 21. Air Serbia has increased flights and capacity to Athens, Barcelona and Istanbul. Aegean Airlines will operate a total of eleven flights from today until Sunday on its Belgrade service. In addition, Air Nostrum, Croatia Airlines, Iberojet and Orbest will operate Barcelona charters, with the latter two expected to deploy wide-body aircraft. Privilege Style will utilise its Boeing 757 from Madrid to the Serbian capital today, while Iberia plans to run two charters to Belgrade on May 19 and May 21.

Belgrade Airport’s General Manager, Francois Berisot, said late last month, “Our results are very promising. Recovery is on the way. We are now at a level much higher than last year, and we reached almost 70% of traffic in the first quarter on what we had before the crisis. Everything is happening at the right time. It was good to open the new facilities recently because we expect a very strong summer season, and we are sure that all the airlines and passengers will come back in the same volume and even more than we had in 2019”. He added, “We want to attract a lot more traffic and offer much more destinations for the benefit of the Serbian people”.

Based on its estimates and modelling formulated last year, the airport estimated it would welcome five million travellers through its doors in 2022 and will be operating at 2019 levels in 2023, when it expects to handle 6.1 million passengers. The airport estimated for figures to grow to 6.9 million in 2024, 7.3 million in 2025 and 7.7 million travellers by the end of 2026. The airport’s record year remains 2019 when it registered 6.158.897 passengers, of which 2.733.304 were carried by Air Serbia and 3.425.552 by foreign airlines.



Comments

  1. Anonymous09:01

    This is a very good result, especially considering the amount of flights to Russia there were in 2019 which are no longer operative.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:57

      They are operative.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:00

      They are? 3 daily Aeroflot flights are operative? Red Wings flights are operative?

      Delete
    3. @09:57 I'm sure he means not as operative as they were previously. A couple of flights a day to Moscow by JU on an Airbus 319 is a tiny fraction compared to the number of flights to Russia in 2019.

      Delete
    4. Marko10:50

      75% of 2019 traffic can be very good result and it can be poor result, depending on the benchmark.

      Putting an isolated number, with no context, does not help much, unless you provide comparator. Only then we can judge the rate of recovery of BEG.

      So, does anyone know what are the numbers (% vs 2019) of comparable airports?

      Delete
    5. Darko17:09

      We do have bench mark, it is 2019. And we are not comparing BEG to other airports in this case, but BEG 2019 to BEG 2022.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous21:39

      Should be taken into account that both Nis and Kraljevo now have decent traffic, which probably has taken away some of BEG's passengers.

      Delete
    7. Marko08:08

      @Darko

      And what are the tresholds, what % of 2019 is considered good, poor or outstanding?

      Delete
    8. Anonymous00:24

      As you wrote, 75% of 2019 levels for 2022 would be ok result, although I would like BEG to reach closer to 90% this year. As for 2023, 15% above 2022 levels would be great.

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:04

    Ah finally we will see Iberia in Belgrade. Even if for a short whiile.

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:10

      I surprised they found BEG on the map. Anything east of Croatia for them is a no go zone.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:22

      * i'm

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:31

      I wonder which aircraft type they will send.

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    4. Anonymous09:46

      Would be nice if it is an A330 :D

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:52

      ^9:10 Iberia Express used to have a seasonal service to Bucharest but they suspended it when the pandemic hit

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:16

      Didn't know that. But considering the size of the Romanian diaspora in Spain (let alone there being tourist demand too), that is pretty poor.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous10:33

      Their presence in the region is almost non existent.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous11:00

      @10:16 you’re right. But competing with TAROM, Blue air, Wizz air and Ryanair on the same route is simply not worth it.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous21:37

      They could offer more, particularly because of their advanced network in South America. They just have to be more active on the market.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous21:39

      Is there really that much demand between the Balkans and South America?

      Delete
    11. Anonymous23:28

      According to Wikipedia about "Serbian diaspora" there are between 10.000 and 100.000 people living each in Brazil and Argentina so I guess there’s a potential market between South America and Serbia either served by Iberia via MAD or a direct flight ( almost impossible to be honest )

      Delete
    12. Anonymous16:07

      That is quite an old diaspora, especially in Argentina. My aunt, for instance, has some relatives there, their familly name iz Ivanovic, but threy`re unable to speak Serbian for some generations now. Don`t think they feel connected to Serbia to much.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous09:05

    Not bad. I think those estimates they made last year will be surpassed.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:09

      Definitely

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:14

      Seems realistic to me that numbers will be back at pre-Covid levels in 2023 like they say.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:22

      Ok so how many passengers we can expect this year at BEG?

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:59

      I think it will be around 5.5 million. We will see.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:34

      ^ Agree. That figure is doable.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous21:32

      That's realistic.

      Delete
  4. Anonymous09:08

    Is the B757 from MAD bringing Real Madrid or fans?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:46

      I believe it will be the team.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:34

      Yes, all the teams are arriving today.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous21:37

      There are some videos on twitter from the planes of the arriving teams.

      Delete
  5. Anonymous09:10

    What could be the numbers for May? My guess around 450,000.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:38

      And how many did they have in May 2019?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:40

      507,663

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:43

      Thank you. Then I agree 450,000 is the likely number for this May.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous21:32

      Not bad

      Delete
  6. Anonymous09:10

    I see Aegean A320 as charter coming today and Air Nostrum CRJ from BCN, guess they are bringing the teams?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:12

      Corendon is also flying this afternoon so I guess that's Efes coming.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:13

      80% of the additional Aegean flights have been scheduled as charters.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:14

      Yes but I think teams are arriving today. I feel sorry for Real Madrid. Imagine a bunch of tall basketball players stuck on a small CRJ.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:16

      Well it's their team management which organised this flight, they should take it up with them :D

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:54

      Meanwhile fans coming on Iberojet and Orbest A330s.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:35

      Do these two airlines sell the flights openly or it is chartered.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous10:40

      Charter

      Delete
    8. Anonymous10:44

      I'm surprised there has been no change or capacity increase from Turkish Airlines.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous10:49

      They have three daily flights and are using mostly A321s. Air Serbia has daily flights and is increasing one of them to A330 plus there are Pegasus flights. I think that is more than enough. If TK still had two daily flights then they might have increase capacity.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous10:49

      If the Turkish teams makes it to the final, then they will probably send a bigger bird.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous10:50

      Sorry, meant team not teams.

      Delete
    12. Anonymous11:57

      Efes doesn't have big fan base.

      Delete
  7. Anonymous09:15

    And BEG gets 12 new routes next month. Things are looking up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:31

      And Eurowings launched DUS-BEG 2 days ago.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:52

      Flydubai goes double daily from next month, so 4 extra weekly flights.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:54

      And Air France resumes flights.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:04

      How many new routes from BEG this year?

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    5. Anonymous10:10

      17 in total.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:17

      Impressive

      Delete
    7. Anonymous23:56

      Norwegian also resumed ARN-BEG today.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous00:30

      Anyone know if Transavia is planning to resume Amsterdam Belgrade flights?

      Delete
  8. Anonymous09:16

    I wonder what was JU's passenger share in April.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:18

      My guess slightly better, around 39-40%.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:28

      This was their pre Covid share too.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous21:38

      It will probably increase next month when they launch a lot of new routes.

      Delete
  9. Anonymous09:17

    Nice to see the airport returning to life.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous09:18

    Nice to see

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous09:18

    Does anyone know which foreign airline is the busiest at BEG if we don't include foreign based airlines (ie Wizz Air)?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:22

      I believe it is Lufthansa.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:22

      At the end of Q1 it was Lufthansa.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:28

      Thanks. It makes sense through these means Air Montenegro's performance is rather poor.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:40

      It's not just that, they never suspended MUC-BEG and for a while now they have been sending A320/321 from FRA.
      LHG seems to have recovered the fastest from all.

      Austria has removed all entry restrictions from last night so hopefully BEG-VIE performs even better.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:47

      Yes, tomorrow they are again sending A321 from Frankfurt in the evening.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous21:41

      @9.28 yes, they have lost a big chunk of the BEG-TGD.TIV market to Air Serbia since Montenegro Airlines went bankrupt. Plus Air Montenegro's network is still rather small so many are connecting via BEG. Quite sad considering YM was really outperforming Air Serbia (especially since they had a codeshare with Air Serbia).

      Delete
  12. Anonymous09:23

    encouraging trends.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous09:25

    Spiffing news!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous09:26

    Good thing that they opened the C extension before this event. At least it will make arriving a much more pleasant experience.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:59

      Not really. Arrivals are still through construction site of new parking lots.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous21:42

      Until they finish the building in front of the terminals the arrivals experience won't be pleasant. It is unfortunate though that they only plan to start adding shops and restaurants to C concourse in 2023.

      Delete
  15. Anonymous09:40

    some optimistic signs

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous09:40

    How many passengers did BEG have last year?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:44

      3.134.106

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:52

      Would be fantastic if they could handle similar numbers to 2019 this year.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:58

      ^ Won't happen this year.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:12

      I think BEG will be close but not at pre pandemic levels this year (passenger wise I mean).

      Delete
  17. Anonymous09:49

    Is 5 million passengers realistic for this year?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:53

      No one can say anything with certainty anymore but if these trends continue and the world continues ending Covid restrictions, it will probably be above 5 million.

      Delete
  18. Anonymous09:49

    Congratulations. Good result.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous10:10

    Hope we see more new airlines.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:11

      I would like them to attract more European legacies

      Delete
    2. Anonymous21:44

      Agree. SAS would be a welcome addition.

      Delete
  20. Anonymous10:11

    I'm hopeful there will be a few more routes from Wizz.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:19

      They already launched a couple this year.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:24

      It would be good to see if another LCC increased flights or launched new routes to BEG.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:25

      easyJet please.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous10:31

      Eurowings, an LCC has, has launched new routes.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:33

      Their prices are anything but low cost.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous23:36

      Agree with Anon 10:24, that said I’d rather see Ryanair launching new routes from BEG to multiple destinations currently not served by a direct service such as Malaga, Krakow, Lisbon, Cologne, Tallinn, Vilnius, Manchester, Dublin, Naples, Corfu, Paphos and finally Vienna ( existing route ) in order to make prices lower and breaking that duopoly OS/JU

      Delete
  21. Anonymous10:19

    Congratulations to BEG, they are a truly great airport with a diverse offer. They have legacy, charter and low cost flights depending on what passengers need.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous10:20

    Good result overall

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous16:01

    Bio bih jos veci uspeh dolaskom drugog A330 da se nije desilo trenutno sto se desilo. Nadam se da ce sledece godine doci vise A320 jel su oni prekopotrebni i da ce se konacno malo vise fokusirati na Bliski istok i Afriku.
    INN-NS

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous17:20

      И ја се надам да био "бих" још бољи.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous20:13

      I dalje nista korisno nema da se cuje od Anonymousa kao i uvek.
      INN-NS

      Delete
  24. Anonymous21:34

    New wing looks great on the photos.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous21:43

      Agree. Looks modern

      Delete
    2. Anonymous21:43

      Can't wait for the entire project to be completed.

      Delete
  25. Anonymous19:25

    ^ BRAVO SRBIJA.

    ReplyDelete

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