LIVE: Air Serbia restores Belgrade - Toronto flights after 34 years


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Warm welcome

Some 20 people with Serbian flags braved strong wind and rain to welcome the aircraft off the right-hand side of the threshold of Runway 6. Toronto Airport control tower wished the aircraft "Dobrodošli" (Welcome) in Serbian. Photo by Aleksandar Gačić

Over the coming days, an Air Serbia delegation will visit the Pratt & Whitney engine manufacturer, as well the Airbus A220 production plant in Mirabel.

Water cannon salute

As per tradition, the aircraft was welcomed with a water cannon salute before pulling into the gate.

Touchdown

Following a generally smooth flight, Air Serbia JU508 has landed at Toronto Pearson Airport in almost winter-like conditions to the applause of passengers onboard. It will proceed to the gate at Terminal 3.

Takeoff

The first flight to Toronto, set to take nine hours and thirty minutes, has departed Belgrade. The flight is expected to be calm with some occasional turbulence over the Atlantic. Today, for the first time, also saw all four of Air Serbia's wide-body aircraft parked next to each other at the gates in Belgrade, with departures to New York and Shanghai also scheduled shortly after Toronto. Updates will resume upon the aircraft's arrival in Toronto.

Boarding completed

After 34 years, the doors have closed on the first aircraft bound for Toronto from Belgrade. Among passengers on the inaugural flight is a Serbian business delegation, which will take part in B2B meetings in Canada, however, the majority of travellers are those visiting their families in Canada.

Boarding

Boarding is set to begin shortly, with the departure time scheduled for 12:30.

Ribbon cutting ceremony completed

CEO: Strong passenger demand and healthy loads

Speaking at the ceremony, Air Serbia's CEO, Jiri Marek, said, “After more than three decades, we are once again introducing a direct route between Belgrade and Toronto, which represents both a significant symbolic and strategic step for our company. Toronto is our third destination in North America, alongside New York and Chicago, further strengthening our intercontinental presence and reinforcing Belgrade’s role as an important hub connecting Europe and North America. The new route carries particular importance for the Serbian diaspora, given the large Serbian community in Toronto, while demand for a direct air link between the two cities has existed for years. This route connects not only two countries, but also families, communities and cultures. At the same time, it enables stronger business and tourism flows, while offering passengers from Canada convenient onward connections to numerous destinations across the region and Europe via Belgrade. Strong passenger demand and healthy cabin loads on the flights underline that this is a well-considered and strategically important move, which is expected to further strengthen Serbia’s connectivity with North America".

Canada's Ambassador, Michelle Cameron, noted, "This is every Ambassador's dream, to be standing here today and launch a new air service. It has taken 34 years and comes in the year of 85 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. This new route brings our two countries closer. We are going to deepen economic ties and tourism in both directions. This is the key to unlocking the potential cooperation these two countries can have".

Send off ceremony

A ceremony to mark the occasion will be held at gate 13 at 11:00. The media will be addressed by Air Serbia's CEO, Jiri Marek, Canada's Ambassador to Serbia, Michelle Cameron and Serbia's Minister for Trade, Adrijana Mesarović. It will be followed by the ribbon cutting ceremony, attended by the abovementioned, as well as the Serbian Minister for Transport and Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Preparations for departure

Today's flight will be operated by the A330-200 jet registered YU-ARE, which was delivered to the airline in February last year. It is currently being refuelled and preparing for departure at gate C12 at Belgrade Airport

Check-in begins

Check-in procedures for today's Toronto flight have begun at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport. Six check-in desks have been dedicated specifically for the Toronto service.


Air Serbia will today launch flights between Belgrade and Toronto, marking the resumption of nonstop services between the two cities after a 34-year hiatus. Flight JU508 is scheduled to depart the Serbian capital at 12:30 local time with 235 passengers booked, including twenty in business class and 215 in economy. The return service, departing Toronto at 18:45 local time, is expected to carry 222 passengers, comprising sixteen in business class and 206 in economy. The Airbus A330-200 aircraft, registered YU-ARE, has been assigned to today’s inaugural service. Toronto becomes the airline’s fifth long-haul destination and third in North America. It is also Air Serbia’s first seasonal long-haul route, with services operating twice per week until September 26.

Today’s launch is symbolic, as it comes exactly 34 years to the day since JAT Yugoslav Airlines operated its last flight between the two cities, after which services were discontinued due to the international air traffic embargo imposed on Yugoslavia. Operations between Belgrade and Toronto were briefly restored between 2006 and 2009 by Canadian leisure carrier Skyservice Airlines, although the seasonal weekly service operated via Dublin. The carrier later filed for bankruptcy in 2010. “This route represents one of the most significant milestones in the recent development of Air Serbia and is of exceptional importance for passengers, tourism and businesses”, the airline said.

Toronto Pearson Airport, photo by Aleksandar Gačić

A farewell ceremony, to be attended by airline and government officials, as well as members of the Canadian Embassy in Belgrade, will be held today at 11:00 local time. EX-YU Aviation News will bring you live coverage from 09:40 local time. Refresh page for the latest version.

The evolution of Belgrade - Canada flights


JAT Yugoslav Airlines began operations to Canada in 1968, as part of its long-haul expansion through its newly established charter division, Air Yugoslavia. At the time, the airline leased an Il-18, DC-6B and Convair Coronado 880 for charter operations, introducing flights to Toronto. The inaugural charter service, operated with a Convair Coronado leased from Miami-based Modern Air, flew via Reykjavik. In 1969 alone, Air Yugoslavia handled 46.000 passengers on long-haul charter services.

Following the success of one-off charters to distant markets such as Canada and the United States, JAT decided to lease, and later acquire, larger Boeing 707 aircraft. The airline operated its first transatlantic Boeing 707 service on June 19, 1970, on charter flights between Belgrade and Toronto. 


While services to the United States and Australia later became scheduled, JAT continued operating regular weekly charters to Toronto for the next thirteen years, adding a second weekly service in June 1983. In 1982, the carrier also introduced a weekly charter service between Belgrade and Montreal. Due to Canada’s protectionist aviation policies at the time, it was extremely difficult for foreign airlines to secure permits for scheduled flights, which is why these services remained classified as charters despite operating on a regular basis.


During the summer of 1983, JAT also operated a fortnightly Ohrid – Ljubljana – Toronto service, as well as flights between Dubrovnik and Toronto, while several services to Vancouver were also introduced.


A bilateral Air Transport Agreement signed between Canada and Yugoslavia on November 16, 1984, granted JAT full commercial rights in Canada, paving the way for scheduled operations. Until then, JAT had served Toronto with Boeing 707 aircraft. Following the agreement, the airline upgraded the route to its new DC-10 jets, and flights were maintained via Zagreb.


However, amid growing political tensions, economic difficulties, and operational challenges at Zagreb Airport, in the second half of 1990, JAT removed the Croatian capital as an intermediate stop on its Canada services.

As Yugoslavia began to disintegrate and JAT discontinued most of its domestic services in the country’s west, the airline continued operating its long-haul network. The United States was the first long-haul market to impose an air traffic embargo on Yugoslavia, on May 21, 1992. JAT operated its final flights to Chicago on May 17 and New York on May 19. The airline’s management then decided to reroute all US-bound passengers via Canada. However, Canada adopted an embargo decision a day later. On May 23, 1992, JAT operated its final Canadian service on the Belgrade - Montreal - Toronto - Montreal - Belgrade routing, ending more than two decades of operations to the country.


In 2026, exactly 34 years to the day after that final flight, operated as JU560/561, Air Serbia is launching services to Toronto, once again using the same “JU” designator as its predecessor.


Comments

  1. Anonymous09:01

    So proud of JU!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. maxi449214:43

      The one place that I come to read to escape politics...

      Delete
    2. Anonymous18:30

      Živela JU! Živela Srbija! Long Live Air Serbia 🇷🇸

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:02

    Very nice article. Good luck Air Serbia

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous09:05

    Good luck and safe flight!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous09:06

    Bravo Air Serbia!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous09:11

    Bravo Air Serbia and Congrats!!

    We have been waiting for this for a long time. Thank you and good luck!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous09:16

    Bravo Air Serbia 🇷🇸🇷🇸🇷🇸

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous09:20

    Congrats and safe flight.
    I remember the JAT ads on TV in the 80ties. They were flying all over the place

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous09:21

    Congratulations JU!!! Can't wait anymore!🇷🇸✈️🇨🇦

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous09:22

    Love the vintage pics. Good luck JU!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous09:26

    Omg they did Ohrid-Toronto charters. What a time haha. Wishing Air Serbia clear blue skies.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous09:49

    Onward and upward!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous09:52

    Fantastic loads.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous10:07

    How much the bilateral allows between Serbia and Canada?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:19

      2pw for allocated airline from each country.

      Delete
  14. Anonymous10:23

    There are five wide bodies parked at BEG C gates at the moment! :)

    4 JU A330-200s - YU-ARB, ARC, ARD and ARE
    1 HU 787-9

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:41

      New York, Chicago, Toronto and Shanghai for JU and Beijing for Hainan. Must be an impressive sight 🥳

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:47

      As a phoney analyst said, 2,5 widebodies are enough for JU scheduled flights :D

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:20

      If they did better scheduling, 3 aircraft could do everything. However, today they are using 4 of them and then on some days in the week just 1 or 2.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous12:01

      If they didn't care about connecting intercontinental traffic into their waves and randomly scheduled flights, they would barely fit all flights in 3 aircraft while leaving no room to iron out any delays that could potentially come or any eventually maintenance that might be needed. It's also worth mentioning that all flights to PVG and 2 of the 3 ORD flights have already been rescheduled to better fit utilisation and connectivity.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous12:55

      Better scheduling?? You know, unlike at OU, those flights have to align with JU waves in order to have connected passengers. Also, it takes available slots at destination airports. Flights are not LEGO toys to align them where you like, as a fake analyst presumes

      Delete
    6. Anonymous14:26

      Calm down guys and stick to the nice news

      Delete
    7. Anonymous15:00

      Neither flights are analyst's toys.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous15:37

      Funny how that Analyst never mentions this blog or its owner but we read about him on here every day. Get a life.

      Delete
    9. Vlad15:53

      The Analyst never mentions this blog because he's salty that ExYu is a well respected and internationally awarded publication while he runs the diary of a village kafana aviation enthusiast.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous16:20

      @15:37 You are misinformed, to put it mildly. Now let's follow the coverage once aircraft lands in Toronto.

      Delete
  15. Anonymous10:40

    JU operated Convair Coronado?!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:48

      wet leased one, for short period of time, until 707 arrived

      Delete
  16. Peter from Sydney11:19

    Fantastic write up! Thanks for the live updates - a big day for JU

    ReplyDelete
  17. Rodney Marinkovic11:53

    Ekscelent pocetak za Toronto! Do sledeceg novog pocetka Er Srbijo vidimo se u Sidneju...

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous11:54

    Excellent coverage. Thank you very much

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous11:57

    All praise for Ju! What a wonderful country it used to serve. Now we cant travel without visas to neither US nor Canada.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous13:13

      We couldnt from Yugoslavia as well. But now is to get visa much, much easier.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous14:28

      Its true. Visas have always been needed I think. Was ir hard then? I've not been

      Delete
  20. Anonymous12:33

    Good luck and safe flight!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous13:17

    Fanatastic coverage and pics. Just let's try a bit less AI. It's hard to tell are those pics real or AI generated.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous13:23

    MIA, KCN, NRT, LAX - when?

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous13:40

    Congratulations to Air Serbia on this expansion to Canada. Great coverage of this event!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Anonymous14:17

    Ovako velika vest a ovako malo komentara. To samo govori koliko nas je JU razmazila u proteklim godinama i koliko su ovakve vesti postale normalnost. Čestitke za Toronto uz želju da postane celogodišnja destinacija.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous16:37

      +1

      Delete
    2. Anonymous17:22

      Da je neka negativna kritika bilo bi 200+ komentara što od susjeda što od bivših Jatovaca.
      Ovako se prave mrtvi 😂

      Delete
    3. Anonymous17:27

      Biće još komentara, ne brini se.

      Delete
  25. Anonymous14:44

    Proud. Wishing AirSERBIA clear blue skies and many years of constant growth.

    ReplyDelete
  26. maxi449214:44

    Was there a photo of all four wide-bodies next to each other today at the gates?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous19:19

      They were not all four there at the same time.
      1100h - Hainan at C7 BEIJING
      1230h - JU (ARE) at C11 TORONTO
      1330h - JU (ARB) at C3 NEW YORK
      1410h - JU (ARC) at C9 SHANGHAI
      1720h - JU (ARD) at C3 CHICAGO

      Delete
    2. EX-YU Aviation22:08

      All four aircraft were parked at the same time, including the aircraft destined for Chicago.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous22:34

      Cool, hvala na info. Lep ostanak u Torontu 😇

      Delete
    4. Anonymous23:01

      + 1

      Delete
  27. Anonymous15:07

    Konacno!! 🇷🇸🛫🇨🇦

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous19:12

      Predugo smo cekali ali bolje ikada nego nikada

      Delete
  28. Anonymous16:35

    I am on the first YYZ-BEG flight in a few hours. Very excited for something I’ve been waiting 20 years for.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous16:42

      Have a good flight!

      Delete
    2. Anonymous17:00

      You are welcome to Belgrade tomorrow!
      Seems that plane will be about 2 hours at YYZ. How will they manage crews?

      Delete
    3. Anonymous17:45

      I think crews were deadheaded on another airline prior to today’s flight. Anyone to confirm? Rather gloomy day in Toronto today.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous21:26

      Of course flight crew for return flight DHC-ed on another airline to fulfill rest and duty times according to law.

      Delete
  29. Anonymous16:41

    Air Serbia has very competitive pricing through local travel agencies in Canada, Serbian population in are very happy here....

    ReplyDelete
  30. Anonymous18:47

    Gledam na Flightradaru sada, u 18:43, četiri širokotrupna aviona Air Serbie lete ka Njujorku, Čikagu, Torontu i Šangaju! Bravo!

    ReplyDelete
  31. Anonymous19:06

    Godspeed Air Serbia!

    YU-APV and YU-APU are joining the fleet shortly! Welcome!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous19:11

      Keep them coming. Great news!

      Delete
  32. Anonymous19:11

    4 A330s from JU in the sky. Love it!

    ReplyDelete
  33. Anonymous21:32

    15:53 estimate touch down, standard taxi time 20 min, so guys are early over 20 mins....

    ReplyDelete
  34. Anonymous21:32

    All times local

    ReplyDelete
  35. Anonymous21:47

    The flight is #1 on FR24 right now. Over 4000 peaple following it as it gets ready for landing 🙂

    ReplyDelete
  36. Anonymous21:58

    About to land any minute now in YYZ. ATC giving them vectors for final approach right about now. Its raining heavy so i guess no water cannon salute

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous23:02

      There was water cannon salute, nice move from Toronto airport

      Delete
    2. Anonymous23:10

      There is a video in the updates! :) nice touch a d thanks ex-Yu admin

      Delete
  37. Anonymous21:59

    Just given instruction to descent at 4000 feet

    ReplyDelete
  38. Anonymous22:02

    Given instr to turn left headin 150

    ReplyDelete
  39. Anonymous22:03

    Speed 190 knots

    ReplyDelete
  40. Anonymous22:06

    Contacting tower given final instructions to land

    ReplyDelete
  41. Anonymous22:09

    AND TOUCHDOWN

    ReplyDelete
  42. Anonymous22:11

    Taxiing D A holding short

    ReplyDelete
  43. Anonymous22:18

    At the Gate. On block.

    ReplyDelete
  44. Anonymous22:24

    This coverage is fantastic

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous23:11

      Amazing! Photos, videos. Unreal. Like we are there.

      Delete
  45. Anonymous22:33

    The arrival ATC said to them "dobro dosli" 🤗

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous22:44

      I was listening to ATC as well and heard that. Very beautiful and historic moment. Bravo Air Serbia! 🇷🇸

      Delete
    2. Anonymous23:00

      I would love to hear that, you listened to live atc? I doubt that i could find video of that somewhere on internet

      Delete
    3. Anonymous23:46

      @23:00
      https://www.instagram.com/reel/DYskPlop65B/?igsh=MW50dXFrc3NycWRjdw==

      I found this on Instagram, at the end you can hear the "dobrodosli" by the tower!

      Delete
    4. Anonymous00:04

      Awesome catch!!! Crapy weather but flight #1, done!!!

      Love the "dobro dosli" comment from ATC. 🙂

      Delete
  46. Anonymous22:39

    Welcome to Toronto!!

    ReplyDelete
  47. AirCEO22:43

    Thank you for great coverage of inaugural flight! I feel like I met you in person 😀

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous00:03

      Evo i ja da se javim. Razmisljam o svemu, dok lagano pijem limunadu na Stradunu.
      Jasmin B

      Delete
  48. Anonymous22:48

    Interesting update that Air Serbia delegation will visit A220 production. Could we see them possibly order the A220 or maybe it looks like its trending that way?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous23:17

      Probably got an invite when they heard that Air Serbia big-shots would be in Toronto.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous23:22

      @22:48 oh please gosh no

      Delete
    3. Anonymous23:25

      @23:22 if they get a good deal for them. Im not against Air Serbia getting A220s at all. They can't always just lease mid age jets and have to replace them every few years. This is now the time for fleet modernization

      Delete
    4. Anonymous23:29

      No A220s for Air Serbia, for the love of God.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous23:38

      +1000

      Delete
    6. Anonymous23:53

      That's two very bed news. Both Airbus A220 with PW engines. Hopefully there is enough sanity in JU management to dodge that bullets.

      Delete
    7. Anonymous00:37

      Very bed indeed.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous00:38

      Bad that an airline was invited to tour an aircraft manufacturing plant with the press? Some of you live from creating unnecessary drama.

      Delete
  49. Anonymous23:36

    I m glad that everything went well and amazing coverage on this blog. Thank you and greetings from Kitchener, about an hour drive from YYZ:)

    ReplyDelete
  50. Anonymous23:41

    https://youtube.com/shorts/uLQKL3UHH5c?si=o9mHZjy-P7Pmks0L

    Video of its arrival, plus people waiting with serbian flags! Lovely moment!

    ReplyDelete

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