Qatar Airways tipped for Ljubljana service


The Qatari Emir, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, has started a two-day official visit to Slovenia accompanied by a sizeable government delegation, where flights between Doha and Ljubljana are also to be discussed. The outgoing Slovenian Minister for Infrastructure, Jernej Vrtovec, has already held talks with the Qatari Minister for Transport and Telecommunications over the introduction of services between the two capitals. Mr Vrtovec noted that despite being a small country, Slovenia is strategically located in Europe, offering benefits to Qatar Aurways. There have never been nonstop flights between the two countries. The only Gulf carrier serving Ljubljana, Flydubai, plans to increase its operations to the Slovenian capital from five weekly to daily starting June 27, just nine months following the route’s launch.

The Qatari Emir, along with his entourage, arrived in Slovenia over the weekend on Qatar Amiri Flight Boeing 747-8, Airbus A340-200 and an Airbus A320. The delegation includes the ministers of foreign affairs, finance and trade. As part of the visit, an agreement will be signed between the tourism and trade promotion agency Spirit Slovenia and Qatar Holding. Qatar Airways, which is preparing for a major increase in demand due to the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Doha, has launched several new European routes over the past year. In the former Yugoslavia, the carrier serves Belgrade and Zagreb, with flights to Sarajevo to be restored next month. The airline is yet to resume services to Skopje, which were suspended at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.

Qatar Airways has considered introducing services to Ljubljana in the past. In 2017, the airline's CEO, Akbar al Baker, noted that “Ljubljana is being looked at”. However, ultimately, no flights were launched between the two cities. The following year, the Qatari Minister for Economy and Trade, expressed hope for services between Doha and Ljubljana to be established in “the near future”. Although there is little demand for point-to-point travel between the two capitals, with just over 1.000 passengers travelling indirectly on a single itinerary in the pre-pandemic 2019, a potential Qatar Airways service would be primarily used by transfer passengers, with the Qatari carrier boasting an extensive international network.



Comments

  1. Anonymous09:01

    No way Jose!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous13:49

      No good company.
      Ignore the staff.

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:02

    This would be fantastic.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous09:02

    If it's not announced today it never will be!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:04

      I don't think it will be today but I think soon QR will announce some new routes.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:37

      They had a few routes to Ukraine which have all been suspended. Odessa they started just a few weeks before the war. So they have the capacity to launch something else with similar flight time. LJU is a possibility.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous14:02

      I think the biggest problem is that black mamba will now become minister for infrastructure and that's a bull sh**

      I don't even know how is this leggal...

      But nevermind, I hope it will become reality and that we see qatar as soon as possible.

      Delete
  4. Anonymous09:03

    Finally!!! If this happens then it will be bad news for TK.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:04

      I'm wondering if LJU is being affected by FZ too.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:22

      Don't know about TK but it did affect their Zagreb flights. They reduced planned frequencies and operate fewer flights than in Ljubljana now.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:26

      Same as Aeroflot's flights from Moscow when they started Ljubljana.

      Delete
  5. Anonymous09:04

    Lets hope the Emir will stop by in Skopje on the way back and announce the restoration of flights to Skopje as well

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:06

      DOH-SKP-LJU could be a good option.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:07

      With fifth freedom rights between SKP-LJU, you would get another issue solved.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:11

      It would be great but it won't happen because the next Macedonian new route tender being fixed for Wizz Air will likely include SKP-LJU route from what I hear.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:14

      This gets my vote too

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:16

      Or triangle flights DOH-LJU-SKP-DOH

      Delete
    6. Anonymous08:12

      Who would fly then if have just connectiion flights in doha. I would prefer like to go with tk or to zagreb.

      Delete
  6. Anonymous09:06

    Can the A320 operate Ljubljana?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:07

      Yes, they operate the A320 to Prague for example.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:09

      Didn't know, thanks

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:19

      Also don't think there would be any restrictions because QR's A320s have generally lower capacity than most A320s out there.

      Delete
  7. Anonymous09:08

    QR would be a fantastic addition in Ljubljana.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous09:11

    Why not? It is an undeserved market with a lot of demand for travel.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:12

      Qatar??

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:14

      Slovenia obviously.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:23

      The outbound market in LJU is quite large. It is also wealthier than most others in the region. Qatar would do well in Ljubljana and these factors would allow them to charge slightly higher fares.

      Delete
  9. Anonymous09:12

    Ahh, what about sth in Europe?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:14

      What?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:54

      Spain, Scandinavia and other countries in north and Baltics, increased frequencies on existing routes, better timeline, Rome...

      Delete
  10. Anonymous09:15

    This route is not going to work well

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:17

      Sure you know, just like DXB right?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:19

      QR will succeed in Ljubljana

      Delete
  11. Anonymous09:15

    That is an impressive number of Qatar planes currently in LJU.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:17

      Especially the 747-8 :)

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:21

      I saw some photos from LJU. All of the planes look stunning.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:32

      Indeed

      https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FS0-X_MWYAEEu0P?format=jpg&name=large

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:41

      Beauty!

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:00

      I can only imagine what it looks like inside

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:19

      I landed last night from London at the same time as they did. First i saw A320 and then i noticed other two. It was so nice to see big birds in Ljubljana. Delegation is HUGE. There were cca 20 SUV driving to Ljubljana when 747 landed (other two arrived earlier). You can see more pics on slovenian media or https://www.sierra5.net/novice-novo/novice/item/4026-na-brniku-pristala-tri-letala-qatar-amiri-flighta

      Delete
  12. Anonymous09:16

    This would be great and I think FZ and QR could work side by side. I believe FZ handles a lot more point to point traffic than transfers, as we've seen with some of the data posted here on other FZ routes in the former Yugoslavia.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous09:17

    this route would work wonders in terms of cargo.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:23

      Would the A320 be able to handle much caego?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:29

      * cargo

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:30

      7 cargo containers can fit in the A320.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:34

      Great

      Delete
  14. Anonymous09:18

    A320, three times per week to Ljubljana would be a good start.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:20

      +1

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:20

      I am sure three weekly on QR will represent a natural progression of Flydubai's daily flights.

      Delete
  15. Anonymous09:23

    I hope that Qatar starts Ljubljana. I know Ljubljana is close to bigger hubs but it can also attract passengers from smaller cities like Graz and Slovenians would travel from LJU if there were options.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:26

      EX-YU may I ask why does this comment always apear on news about LJU flights to Middle east?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:21

      On my flight to London there were many austrians (i guess Villach and Klagenfurt) ... i think Ljubljana airport should focus on them more ...

      Delete
    3. JU520 BEGLAX13:32

      They are. LJU airport is a gateway for part of SLO, Kärnten, Osttirol and Tarvisio/Tolmezzo area. But of course it all depends on flight and price availabilities. It wld be interesting to know, how much Kärtnen Airtravel departs via LJU. My guess is around 10-15% as I see Austrian plate nbrs around the airport, u hear German language on the planes, but definitely not in larger numbers.

      Delete
  16. Anonymous09:26

    Good luck Ljubljana!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous09:29

    From a cargo perspective, this would be a nice addition to the airport and would directly compete vs TK, due to A320 having better cargo capacity then B737 and due to both airlines offering lots of connections onwards. There's a lot of demand for smaller shipments that would fit into belly of the airbus. Currently for QR all shipments go to BUD and get exported from there. You eliminate 2-3 transit days because of that and lower the cost due to no trucking needed between LJU and BUD. Overall it would be a win for the airport in terms of cargo.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:33

      And it's an important aspect for each airline, especially on longer routes like this. Good to know.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:22

      TK is flying A321 to LJU.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12:23

      My bad anon 10:22. The A320 vs B737 comparrison was targeted at FZ, I should specify that.
      That is why I think it's going to be direct competition to TK due to both having Airbus planes.

      Delete
  18. Anonymous09:31

    LJU is taking them ages.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous09:33

    Hope we see more of them in the region.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:36

      What happened with their planned Dubrovnik flights?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:40

      It didn't launch because of Covid in 2020 and they never restored plans to launch it. At least not for the time being.

      Delete
  20. Anonymous09:34

    Great news. With world cup being hosted in qatar in a few months numbers will continue to go up. Good luck to QR.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:35

      I doubt this route will launch before the World Cup. Possibly next year.

      Delete
  21. Anonymous09:35

    They fly to most neighboring airports with widebodies

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:38

      Are you suggesting they should do the same with LJU?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:39

      No, just noting that they have already developed in neighboring regions.

      Delete
  22. Anonymous09:38

    Good to see gulf airlines paying more attention to Slovenian market.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous09:38

    It would make them the only One World airline in Ljubljana right?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:41

      It would be the fourth. BA, Finnair and Iberia but the later two for some reason terminated LJU.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:21

      Finnair because of lack of Asian tourists, Iberia because of lack of aircraft.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:24

      HEL is number 1 unserved route from LJU, and Iberia is getting like 5 A320Neos this year so I don't think lack of aircraft is the right excuse.

      Delete
  24. Anonymous09:40

    How long would this flight last for?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:10

      Doha - Ljubljana - 5h50min
      Ljubljana-Doha - 4h50min

      Delete
  25. Anonymous10:11

    Ok, what is the realistic timeframe when these flights could launch?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:18

      They could launch any time, especially considering QR had to discontinue Kyiv and Odessa because of the war (and I doubt they will come back any time soon). So they have aircraft available.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:42

      Qatar will come to Ljubljana sooner or later

      Delete
  26. Anonymous10:20

    With QR no longer under blockade and able to fly to other Gulf market, I think these flights could work well.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:26

      Other than Dubai (if they offer competitive fares compared to Flydubai), I don't see a lot of transfers for elsewhere in the Gulf.

      Delete
  27. Anonymous10:20

    They have been hiring a lot of Slovenian crew lately.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:26

      That doesn't mean much.

      Delete
  28. Anonymous10:26

    How many times do they currently fly to ZAG and BEG?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:43

      5 per week for each. Increasing to 7 in July.

      Delete
  29. Anonymous10:39

    Considering that there were 1000 passengers between the two cities and LJU having less than 1M annual pax, it sounds like wet dreams

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:43

      There isn't much P2P traffic from most European cities to Doha. QR is primarily a transfer airline.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous12:15

      Add people who travel from Ljubljana to VCE, ZAG, VIE to catch QR and the number is much bigger

      Delete
  30. Anonymous10:43

    I really hope this materializes.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Anonymous10:58

    I remember back when Pahor was begging QR to buy Adria. Shame it didn't happen. Maybe they would still be around.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Anonymous10:59

    They have nothing to do there.

    ReplyDelete
  33. Anonymous11:01

    Would love to see their bird parked in LJU.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous18:54

      Fingers crossed.

      Delete
  34. Anonymous11:09

    Logical. Only ex-yu market for Qatar left to launch which makes sense.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Anonymous11:17

    Just in from Qatar:

    "As for the air connectivity between Ljubljana and Doha, HE Sultan bin Salmeen said that Qatar Airways is very interested in the European market, but opening a new route requires time to study the market and operate it, and once completed, the air route will be opened.
    He said Slovenia is a tourist country that relies on this sector as a main resource in the economy and has attractive facilities, adding that the tourism component between the two countries could constitute a leap during the coming period. He pointed out that the Slovenian President presented the tourism file during his recent visit to Doha and found Qatari welcome in this cooperation."

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:19

      They have been studying it for several years. I hope flights begin soon.

      Delete
  36. Anonymous11:23

    I thought that in Slovenia we are against carriers which receives millions from their government? Double standards!?!?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous14:30

      It's different when someone else pays for it.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous15:30

      Nothing is for free, in fact most expensive are normally things which you get for free! One way or another..

      Delete
  37. Anonymous18:57

    Unexpected but good to see.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Anonymous23:02

    I can't wait

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

EX-YU Aviation News does not tolerate insults, excessive swearing, racist, homophobic or any other chauvinist remarks or provocative posts with the intention of creating further arguments. A full list of comment guidelines can be found here. Thank you for your cooperation.