Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport is expecting one of its busiest years in 2026, with passenger numbers projected to surpass pre-pandemic 2019 levels. That year marked a turning point for the airport, as its home carrier, Adria Airways, which accounted for more than 50% of total traffic, declared bankruptcy in September. The airport is on track for strong growth, with scheduled seat capacity in the first half of the year set to increase by 17.5%, or just over 150.000 seats year-on-year. This will mark the first time since 2019 that more than one million seats will be available during the first six months. While capacity in the first half of 2026 will remain below 2019 levels, the second half of the year is expected to exceed figures recorded seven years ago.
Unlike last year, Ljubljana Airport will be served by Vueling, which launched operations in December, and Pegasus Airlines, set to introduce services to the Slovenian capital at the end of the month. In addition, easyJet has expanded its presence by adding two new destinations, Manchester and Edinburgh, while Wizz Air will inaugurate flights from Podgorica.
Furthermore, Iberia will significantly extend its seasonal Madrid - Ljubljana service by resuming operations on June 2 and operating twice weekly until September 25. This marks a notable expansion compared to the 2025 season, when flights ran only between July 27 and September 7.
Other airlines that plan to grow frequencies from Ljubljana include KLM, which will double operations from seven to fourteen per week, as well as Aegean Airlines from Athens, Flydubai from Dubai, British Airways from London Heathrow, Swiss from Zurich and Wizz Air from Skopje.
The Slovenian government is set to continue its policy of attracting new airlines through its subsidy scheme, with a tenth call for expressions of interest expected to be issued shortly.
Fraport woke up from its slumber, ig
ReplyDeleteIt only took 7 years.
DeleteSurpassing 2019 in passengers doesn’t necessarily mean surpassing it in connectivity or quality.
DeleteTrue!
DeleteWhat quality exactly? Are you seriously suggesting that Lufthansa Group, Air France, KLM, Finnair, BA, etc. offer a lower-quality product than Adria?
DeleteIt did not. Half of the airport is closed. No strategy, no ambition, passengers are just a necessary evil.
Delete^ Yes, they do not customers in their business! They want to lose money from their investment!!
DeleteThe stuff you read here are amazing! 😂
* do not want.
Delete^ Why ruin his fantasy He is convinced that Fraport only bought LJU and build a new terminal because it actually hates Slovenia, Ljubljana and the airport and actually wants as few passengers as possible!
DeleteCorrect.
DeleteHow big are the increases of other airlines in capacity/frequency? (Lufthansa, Finnair, BA, Wizz, Aegean, Swiss and others?)
ReplyDeleteLX 7 weekly more
DeleteLH to FRA with A319/320/E95 instead of CRK
Wizz Air new flts to TGD
A3 3 instead of 2 weekly
AY not sure if more weekly flts but many A321 and A320 flts
BA I see still see 8 weekly like last year
Easy new MAN and EDI flights
KL 7 weekly more (- 4 weekly Transavia)
new PC flts
Vueling 2 weekly BCN
IB extending MAD flights
BT also one weekly more to RIX
DeleteAF in July and Aug will have 3 weekly 1950h ETD flights but I think AF just switching times, i think they had in 2025 also 10 weekly in Summer peak
Thank you for the very informative post!
DeleteBA have 9 flights in July and Avgust. 2 daily saturdays and sundays.
DeleteWizz is also increasing SKP
DeleteStill feels like Ljubljana is missing a proper base carrier. Growth is welcome, but it’s all fragmented compared to pre-Adria days.
ReplyDeleteWhat difference would that bring to the market?
DeleteEarly morning departures, frequencies, network, ... JP was doing double even triple daily rotations, flew to major hubs, was in alliance.
DeleteAnd losing millions of Euros every single year. No thanks.
DeleteBut but bringing in billions and billions! /sarcasm off
DeleteThey would not be able to exceed numbers if Adria went bankruptcy in November and December. That's why they will be still far from 2018 numbers.
ReplyDeleteEncouraging to see network depth improving, not just new routes.
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteNice to see growth driven by legacy carriers as well not just LCCs
DeleteNice mix of network and low cost airlines
DeleteStill hard to believe it’s taken seven years just to get back to 2019 seat levels. Adria’s collapse really set LJU back a decade.
ReplyDeleteIt’s like comparing apples and pears. Before numbers were driven with transfer passengers which were counted twice for each transfer. Now that’s gone.
DeleteLjubljana finally feels like it’s turning a corner.
ReplyDeleteAnd we are still waiting for one more easyJet route.
ReplyDeleteLjubljana feels more stable. Slow, steady rebuilding.
ReplyDeleteLjubljana has finally shaken off the Adria trauma
ReplyDeletePre-pandemic Ljubljana was more connected even with fewer airlines.
ReplyDeleteFeel free to exercise your altruistic motives by creating your own airline and connecting the city better.
Delete^that's not how things work.
DeleteOf course they don't, but I do not understand the same commenters every time who expect that either Fraport as the airport manager or the government will somehow operate unprofitable lines.
Delete^ Actually that is exactly how thigs work.
DeleteVueling and Iberia expanding is great but Spain is still completely underserved.
ReplyDeleteIs Vueling sticking to just one weekly flight in summer?
DeleteNo it's 2 weekly.
Deleteprobably for now?
DeleteStill missing more Central and Eastern European links
ReplyDeleteFew airlines in the region with aircraft the size that would work for very short flights within the region. I can't see any airline filling an 737 or A320 between LJ and say Krakow easily.
Deletethe high density expert strikes again
Deletebut from trieste they can?
Delete@11:17. What are you on about?
DeleteIt will be interesting to see if TK is impacted by Pegasus.
ReplyDeleteIt hasn't been impacted anywhere else in ex-Yu, I don't see why it would be impacted in LJU.
DeleteActually TK's growth in the region has been impacted by PG's expansion. Just compare their pax numbers over the last 12 months.
DeleteAlso their growth percentages over the last few years.
they are feeling the pressure from PG so they brought Alpha jet to better compete with them on price.
+1
DeleteThey brought what?
Delete^ Alpha jet, it is the low cost arm of TK.
DeleteAlpha jet lol.
DeleteCould have surpassed 2019 numbers back in 2019 if they made and offer to easyjet or Wizz.
ReplyDeleteLjubljana’s recovery is cautious and measured which isn’t a bad thing.
DeleteLjubljana will never be a hub and that’s okay. Focus on quality links.
DeleteImpressive how Aegean plans to fly to LJU with 3 weekly same with ZAG. Seems LJU growing on them.
ReplyDeleteIs the traffic on the route more LJU originating or more from ATH?
DeleteMore from LJU and transfers to Greek islands.
DeleteΤhank you!
DeleteThis is not true. Mostly there are connecting passengers from all A3 network. I see also a lot of pax from Emirates (transfers to Dubai, New York and Emirates network in general).
DeleteBravo Fraport!
ReplyDeleteBravo for taking 7 years to reach relatively small numbers? And they are not even record numbers.
DeleteNo just bravo Fraport but also bravo Krasnja. He is THE mental capacity behind This growth.
DeleteIt is not Fraport's fault that Adria doesn't exist any more to offer cheap connections to the region and thus boost traffic numbers in LJU.
DeleteActually almost all traffic now is O&D.
LJU's O&D traffic for 2025 was much higher than the O&D traffic the airport had in either 2019 or 2018.
DeletePeople expect too much from a relatively small market.
ReplyDeleteLJU has surpassed my expectations based on the number of airlines and destinations offered.
DeleteBarcelona is doing amazing, hopefully MAN and LPA as well.
ReplyDeleteHow do you know BCN is doing amazing? Prices are relativley cheap an a320 is used always...
DeleteThis year will be huge for Lju.
ReplyDeleteGod help us ground staff
DeleteAny hints or possibilities for new leissure route?
ReplyDeleteFinally some good news for LJU. Took long enough, but better late than never.
ReplyDeleteWe keep comparing everything to 2019, but the market has changed permanently.
ReplyDeleteWizz Air still treating LJU like an afterthought.
ReplyDeleteVienna, Venice, Zagreb and Trieste are still draining traffic.
ReplyDeleteAnd Graz especially in summer.
DeleteTrue Graz too
DeleteIllegal. How dare people from Maribor use Graz for their summer holidays.
Delete@11:59 Because there are no direct LCC flights from LJU to Turkey or Greece ? :)
Delete@Anonymous 11:59
DeleteThankfully we are EU members so we get to decide which airport and which airline we chose to use.
This is 2026, not 1986.
^ you might be in the EU but it hasn't helped your education in deciphering sarcasm.
DeleteAlso AirMontenegro finally scheduled Tivat for the summer, which brings the number of destinations to 30!
ReplyDeleteAbout time
DeleteTivat has been MNE summer destination instead of Podgorica for some time now ...
DeleteWhat about Easyjet when they were talking about another route to LJU? Any news on that?
ReplyDeleteHopefully it happens
DeleteFingers crossed for BER.
DeletePlease not BER again, those artsy passengers are impossible to explain lowcost baggage policy.
DeleteI'm surprised LOT isn't increasing frequencies.
ReplyDeleteTheir numbers are stagnating. I think they have been impacted by Air Baltic.
DeleteStagnating LOL.
Delete^ I don't know what's funny? Last year, their numbers are mostly the same or below each month on the year before.
Delete2024 Jan-Oct: 49.919
Delete2025 Jan-Oct: 56.811
That's stagnation? "Their numbers are mostly the same or below each month on the year before" this is also a lie.
13.8% growth is the opposite of stagnation!
DeleteI love it when LJU sees strong numbers.
ReplyDeleteDream on Fraport!
ReplyDeleteHuh?
Deletei think most important is that finally people are also getting feeling that you can fly cheap out of Ljubljana ...
ReplyDeleteWell it was never just a feeling, prices were just to high. With now Airbaltic, TK, LOT, AEGEAN there is quit a preassure on LH with good connections and prices. LJU now needs some summer leisure destiantion(s) with LCC and public will be satisfed for some time.
DeleteSo Ljubljana will probably have around 1.6 MIO passengers in 2025. If they want to break the record they currently hold (182k in 2018) they would need to grow on average 14% in 2026 - which I think it should be reasonable. To reach 2MIO they would need 25% growth which i think wont be possible. i believe they will reach a bit less than 1,9 MIO next year.
ReplyDelete2 mio is target for 2030
DeleteThey bake small rolls in Slovenia 😉
i think:
Delete2026 - 1.85 MIO
2027 - 2.00 MIO
Does anyone know what happened to Wizz air and Swiss today in Ljubljana?
ReplyDeleteHeavy snowfall - LOT also diverted to Vienna.
DeleteInteresting, because earlier today, Ljubljana Airport posted on their Instagram profile that the snow is not affecting operations.
DeleteVueling is curently holding and waiting for landing clereance
DeleteThey are happily posting how their snow team is doing an amazing job yet since 3pm no flights have been able to land or take off.
DeleteExactly. They could have managed to clear the runway for those few flights...
DeleteWell flight from INI was diverted back to INI above Ljubljana ? There is not so big snowfall?
ReplyDeleteAlso JU to BEG and Vueling to TRS. Why is everyone still flying to Ljubljana and then diverting if noone was able to land after 2 PM?
DeleteThe snow has largely stopped... A shame LJU cannot handle a few flights in a day during 15cm of snow.
DeleteReally strange. Now LH just took off in FRA. Lets see if they are able to land in LJU
DeleteThe biggest catch is that the 15cm of snow fellthroughout of 10 ours not in 1 hour. I dont understand either.
DeleteIf someone has some insight info it would be highly appreciated since the snow itself was relatively light and the winds didnt appear to be heavy also as for visibility it appeared to be well above lju limitations, really curious about the reason...
DeleteLH seems to return to FRA 😃🙈
DeleteThis is really strange...
The LJU Airport Webcam shows ongoing snowfall and the apron is not cleaned. Looks like 10 cm of snow at least
DeleteLH1460 FRALJU diverted to MUC. They turned around over Villach
DeleteHmm, any pilotes out here who could explain because this looks really weird...?
DeleteI live 15 min from LJU airport, the snow mostly stopped around 10 pm, so they could have landed easyly.
DeleteI bet its just the incompetence of the staff sadly... Someone who works there was once writing on here that they are veryyy understaffed.
DeleteN1 published: The reason for airport clouser was ICE on the runway.
DeleteWho are they deporting now.
DeleteLet's look at it this way, Slovenia has 4 airports: LJLJ, LJMB, LJPZ, LJCE and everything is concentrated only on LJLJ, is this regional development, how many airlines have bases at Slovenian airports, what is the connectivity like in winter and how much is lost or gained in foreign investments because of this?
ReplyDeleteWe need Ryanair base in Celje
DeleteAnon 21:20 you realise Slovenia is very small right?
DeleteAnd they will somehow achieve this by scheduling all departing flights around 2 p.m.
ReplyDeleteHow come Brussels Airlines is not increasing frequencies?
ReplyDeleteThey don't have enough aircraft.
Delete