The national carriers from the former Yugoslavia have unveiled plans to expand their respective fleets this year, with each planning to add several aircraft.
Croatia Airlines will introduce two brand new Airbus A220 jets as it begins its transition to a single-type fleet. The aircraft are currently scheduled to arrive in “mid-2024” according to the airline. Due to their delivery later on in the season, the carrier does not expect to significantly expand its network during the summer peak but has announced plans to add new routes during the 2024/25 winter season, with a greater emphasis on operations out of Dubrovnik being considered. In addition to the A220s, Croatia Airlines is finalising a longer-term wet-lease of an A320 jet from Trade Air, which could begin operating on behalf of the Croatian flag carrier as early as next month. The jet would initially be based in Zagreb, before being relocated to Split to cater for the airline’s summer schedule out of the coastal city. The Croatian carrier is also eyeing a second A320 wet-lease for the 2024 summer season.
Air Serbia has unveiled plans to double its A330-200 fleet by May, while it also intends to expand the number of narrow-bodies. The carrier has signed a Letter of Intent for an additional three ATR72-600 deliveries during the first quarter of this year, for a total of ten aircraft of the same type. However, the airline anticipates possible delays in their arrival due to a landing gear shortage on the market for regional aircraft. In addition, Air Serbia plans to wet-lease a further two Embraer E195 jets from Marathon Airlines in the coming months, and anticipates having up to six aircraft from the Brazilian manufacturer during the summer. The carrier is also exploring the dry-lease of an additional three A320 jets, with the company hoping to secure agreements for the units “as soon as possible”. However, demand for A320ceos remains high due to ongoing issues with their neo counterparts.
Air Montenegro will expand its fleet in 2024 to facilitate for its announced network expansion, which includes the introduction of four new routes. The Montenegrin carrier has concluded the wet-lease for one A320 aircraft from Trade Air for the duration of the 2024 summer season. The airline also plans to dry-lease two Embraer aircraft, alongside the two jets it already owns. The planes will be dry-leased for between three and a half and six years. The carrier is also considering the wet-lease of additional Embraer capacity during the upcoming summer months. The Montenegrin government recently adopted plans to acquire a grounded E195 aircraft (registered 40-AOC), previously operated by the defunct Montenegro Airlines, for five million US dollars from the Brazilian BNDS bank. Once the transaction is completed, the state will decide the aircraft’s fate, which has been grounded for over three years. However, it is expected for the jet to undergo maintenance and be transferred to Air Montenegro.
Interesting that two airlines plan to wet lease Trade Air planes.
ReplyDeleteI saw one of their A320s in BEG the other day. Not sure what it was doing there.
DeleteTrade Air often operates from BEG. They 've been leased by Jat Airways before, and by Air Serbia recently, mostly on ad-hoc bases. They even had their own charters for some Serbian football clubs, about 10 years ago
DeleteBtw, Trade Air CEO was born in Belgrade
DeletePartizan BC charters them for Euroleague away matches
DeleteIt's irrelevant what country the CEO is born in. It's their capability that matters most.
DeleteOf course it's irrelevant. That's why I wrote btw
DeleteA tiny correction it's not that aircraft ARE going to arrive AN aircraft IS going to arrive
DeleteIt is are because it is plural. The plural of aircraft is also aircraft, not aircrafts, which is not a word.
DeleteSo JU plans to add the most aircraft. Question is what will materialize.
ReplyDeleteOf course it plans to add the most, since it is by far the biggest company in the region…
DeleteBeing the biggest doesn't make it the best!
DeleteLike it or not it is the best.
DeleteIt will be materialise
DeleteWhat does "md 2024" mean? June?
ReplyDeleteIt means they are probably uncertain of the exact month of delivery.
Delete* sorry meant to write "mid"
DeleteGood to see some progress among airlines.
ReplyDeleteWhat some people see as progress, the others see as nail in the coffin. OU single type fleet for example
DeletePOZDRAV : I really-really hope from the bottom of my heart OU go bankrapt . Every day same old-same old ! So boring !
DeleteI said thousand times I would continue criticizing OU for their bad decisions, missed opportunities, incompetence, crime and corruption, as long as needed. I said thousand times too, all of you who don't like what I write, to scroll over and skip reading my comments. Knowing that, the only one boring here is you. And btw I still hope OU won't go BANKRAPT but be transformed and finally start to grow.
DeleteAnnoying is a better word, perhaps.
DeleteGood news!
ReplyDeleteHope JU gets those ATRs on time.
ReplyDeleteAnd no one has an issue that the government is buying planes for Air Montenegro lol.
ReplyDeleteI like the fact that they are buying the plane but will officially decide what to do with it after they buy it. How silly. What if they determine it is too expensive to bring it back into a flying state? They will just waste 5 million in taxpayers money for nothing?
DeleteA220s are perfect for OU but I would not retire the Q400s.
ReplyDeletePerfect? It is larger than the A320s and Dash 8s and their average load factor is hovering at 60%.
DeleteAir Montenegro is thriving!
ReplyDeleteThriving might be a bit of a strong word.
DeleteThriving, yes that is the word I was looking for.
DeleteIt will be interesting to see how many wet-leases Air Serbia plans this year.
ReplyDeleteHopefully less than in 2023.
DeleteThis seems like yet another messy summer season on the horizon for JU. Grandious plans but no resources to implement.
ReplyDeleteWhat are exactly the "grandiose plans"? So far they increased frequencies on total of 4 routes for the summer, so I'm really wondering what "grandiose plans" you are talking about.
DeleteI wish them all the best of luck.
ReplyDeleteAir Serbia should lease A321 for summer charters.
ReplyDeleteIt would make most sense. Even a wet lease
DeleteWhat are the aircraft leasing rates at the moment?
ReplyDeleteExpensive
DeleteLots of variables with lease rates
DeleteSomething tells me those A220s are going to be late, probably last quarter of 2024.
ReplyDeleteI think so too. That's why they didn't plan to do anything with them this summer. They are already late. The first one was supposed to come next month.
DeleteThat something, is it a crystal bowl?
DeleteWell it could be based on the existing trends. Croatia Airlines has been taking delivery of new planes for the past 10 years and they never arrived. This one has now been delayed.
DeleteLarge deals like this take time. OU has been in negotiations, not taking delivery. Curb your maliciousnes.
DeleteTake time? They changed their order three times while shrinking in size and growing losses. Curb the makebelief parallel universe you live in.
DeleteNot bad for JU - additional turboprops, Embraer, Airbus narrow bodies and wide bodies. Basically, all types in the fleet are being expanded.
ReplyDeleteIt's going to take a lot of money to bring that Montenegro Embraer back into service.
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteQuestionable if it is worth it.
DeleteWould be interesting to know how much is Croatia Airlines paying for the A220s.
ReplyDeleteThe government mentioned entire deal is worth 500 million EUR. Whether that is true or not I don't know.
DeleteThanks, but the planes are being leased, meaning they have a leasing rate so I don't know how the government came up with that figure.
DeleteWho cares. Stoka sitnog zuba will pay for it, no matter what the cost is
DeleteI am also a bit confused with the whole payment deal for these A220. The planes will be leased, but there are some down payments and OU did sale and leaseback in order to pay something related to A220. What I have read here is that OU is actually buying 33 engines for these airplanes. Is that it? The airplanes will be leased, but the engines will be OU's? 15 planes, plus 3 spares? Or is there something else that OU is paying?
DeleteNobody knows. Not even certain CEO. To be honest, he only knows when and where to eat and slurp cofee.
DeleteThe good news is everyone seems to be developing their fleets, at least what is left of the national airlines.
ReplyDeleteVery interested to see what OU's entry into service program for the A220s will be like
ReplyDeleteLet's hope they actually arrive.
DeleteMinken? Vrankvurt?
DeleteBravo OU!
ReplyDeleteHau jes nou
DeleteI believe Air Serbia will be in top 3 european airlines this summer as the matter of wet leases . Personaly I don't know why, but I don't like flying in white liveries .
ReplyDeleteMost likely. It was already in the top last summer.
DeleteNema ljudi prijatelju, nema ko da leti te avione. Izašao konkurs, 140 ljudi se javilo jedva 30 izabrali.. Dok su oni izabrali njih i krenuli školovanja, 10 otišlo u penziju ili dalo otkaz. I tako u krug, godinama... Nadam se da Vam je malo jasnije zašto wet lisuju ovoliko.
DeleteLiterally every single airline in this article is wet leasing planes as are many others including the most prominent and largest airlines in the world. It is obviously a wider issue.
DeleteOf course it is... Global pilot shortage, that is solved only by two things. Improve terms and conditions. Ie. Money and schedule. Ask major USA airlines and low cost airlines for advice how is it done. JU and OU are too small for such a big turnover of pilots.
DeleteWhy? Well pay and schedule/life style.
DeleteWe’re waiting for the AirSERBIA A321, for Moscow, Zurich routes.
ReplyDeleteYes, they would come in handy. For Barcelona too.
DeleteThey said recently A321s are still on the table and a possibility.
DeleteIs there any reason why they are not sending YU-ARC to Moscow this winter?
DeleteMultiple reasons. Lessor does not want plane to fly to Russia, insurer does not want plane to fly to Russia, airline does not want to risk its wide body getting stuck in Russia due to tech problem. Both of Air Serbia's A330s avoid flying through Russian airspace on flights to/from China, which is also an indication that the lessors and insurers do not allow it.
DeleteI thought YU-ARC was leased with specific conditions with lessor/insurers that would enable it to fly to Russia, which it did.
DeleteI don't understand why they don't lease one A330 from Chinese or UAE lessors/insurers.
DeleteDid JU give a statement if they will send back an A319 with every new A320 that arrives?
ReplyDeleteOr will they keep both for now.
They said a few months ago that the A320s will replaced the A319 as the A319 lease agreements end.
DeleteWill be interesting to see how that will play out. Did JU plan this well. So they A320 come in time before the lease ends. And they don't get caught short to cover with wet leases
DeleteNo they plan for the A320s to come months after the A319 lease ends and it never dawned on them that the replacement planes should be there in time to replace the aircraft.... some poeple on here.
DeleteJU didnt have a back-up for the A330 deal last year so when the deal fell through they had a big set-back. thats not good planning. JU keeps having delays with a lot of things. they have 2 wide bodies with different products onboard they still havent sorted.
Deletethey keep having many problems due to issues they didnt plan well or even having a contigency plan in place.
you should understand there is a difference between a plan with hope and a well thought out plan.
And you think there are thousands of A330s available on the market for an airline to have a "back up" while negotiating a plane deal? Why negotiate then at all? But you are right, they are completely disorganized and have poor planning. They added 10 aircraft to the fleet last year, handled 4.1 million passengers, introduced 23 new routes, had revenue of over half a billion euros, and will have profit of over 35 million euros but they are complete MESS. They should hire you and analaticiar to find them back-up planes while negotiating leases.
DeleteSad not a single airline in ex-Yu operate Boeing aircraft anymore :(
ReplyDeleteETF operates 737-800
DeleteTrue, I forgot about them, but still no scheduled carrier.
DeleteDreamliner would complement A220 perfectly in OU. Brand new shiny, of course 😃 Won't happen, I know, as long as Mafia is in charge, but would be nice
Delete787 gud, A220 bed.
DeleteNo. Bot bed bikoz tu ekspenziv. It sud hev bin E170/175/190/195, A320/321XLR/330. Bat vans nju startid vi ken drim nju kontinid. If lajk diz izir for ju
DeleteE170/175 no van bajing in Jurop animore. Tejking det plajn vud bi as gud desižion as Adria bajing CRJ100/200.
DeleteNo van bajing in Jurop bikoz of politikz bat bajing in d Stejts - Envoj dzast ordrd 19 pisiz. Adria bajing CRJ1-2 bed, agrid, bat no sejm situejsn, veri difrent
Delete:D
DeletePisiz... 😂😂😂😂
DeleteNe znam se ko je ludji od vas dvojice, ili ja što vas skroz razumem. 🤣
Waj den erlajns bajing Boeing end njuer Embraer plajns?
DeleteOl drti mani, ol drti mani 8:30 😃 End tenks bro 1:22, if onli vi ver mor 😃
DeleteNemaš odgovor? Odlično.
DeleteOne Embraer is already painted in JU livery and sitting in Athens.
ReplyDeleteIt has been like that for a month. What is happening with it?
Delete2024 Will be OU's year, Bravo Hrvatska, Bravo Jasmin, Forward to the A220!!!
ReplyDeleteJasmineeeeeee!!!! Zdravo jarane, pa dje si ti meni do sad? Nije valjda u Buzinu, nije valjda dotle doslo? I hvala ti sto me nasmija od srca, evo ne merem prestat, sve se za stomak drzim 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
DeleteWill Air Serbia wet lease both Klasjet aircraft through 2024? If ATRs are late would they use Embraer 175?
ReplyDeleteYes they will lease B738s from KlasJet.
DeleteJust wondering what happened to Pink Air? I remember reading a few months ago that they were going to fly regionally this year.
ReplyDeleteReread again. They said they were considering it, not that they will fly. And the company is called Air Pink.
DeleteThey may consider short routes like Mostar, Nis, Kraljevo, Osijek, Gyor, Debrecin, Timisoara, Kluj, Burgas as a feeder to Air Serbia
DeleteWell they recently had a call for pilots, so we will see what happens.
DeleteIf they recently had a call for pilots Im sure they were not just considering .
DeleteHope that would be a A320 with Sharklets for JU :)
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteExciting developments for all three. Looking forward to 2024.
ReplyDeleteWould be nice for the former republics to create a common airline like SAS, BAA Balkan Air Alliance
ReplyDeleteFormer republics had common airline. It was called JAT Yugoslav Airlines. It was one of the biggest and the most important european airlines of those times, and global player, operating Los Angeles to Sydney. Yugoslavia, which was combining the best from the East and the best from the West, had to brutally disappear in blood, because its model, which the oil rich countries were starting to adopt and implement (later the same scenario was applied there) was potential threat to liberal capitalism and New World Order or "new normal" which we live today. Not only Yugoslavia was destroyed, but we also witness to falsification of history, where it's basically impossible to find true information what and how strong Yugoslavia was. The same goes for its flag carrier - JAT. Just try to google it - there is no information - all you will get is Jat Airways, which is another Universe. That's why idea you suggest will never be realized.
Delete