PREMIUM
Belgrade Airport currently has the greatest number of flights to Africa out of all former Yugoslav markets. All of them are in the continent’s North, which remains most popular with passengers. Belgrade boasts scheduled year-long flights to both Tunis and Hurghada, as well as numerous charters to Monastir, Sharm-el-Sheikh, as well as Hurghada during the summer. Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, Air Serbia maintained operations to Cairo as well. However, just a decade ago, Belgrade Airport also offered scheduled services to Monastir and Tripoli on a year-round basis and seasonal summer flights to the island of Djerba. Hurghada is the most popular destination in Africa served directly from the airport, with 104.712 passengers flying between the two cities in 2019.
During the last normal year in commercial aviation, in 2019, a total of 54.387 passengers flew indirectly between Belgrade and cities in Africa. Despite offering nonstop flights to several points on the continent, those destinations were also the most popular with indirect travellers, namely, Monastir, Tunis and Cairn. Air Serbia introduced services to Cairo in June 2019, however, they were discontinued at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic and have not been restored since. Flights to Tunis are maintained by Tunsiair, while Monastir is being served by both Air Serbia and Nouvelair on a charter basis this summer. The most popular unserved African destination from Belgrade is Algiers in Algeria, followed by Casablanca in Morocco.
Belgrade Airport's top unserved destinations in Africa in 2019
In recent years, there have been attempts to establish flights between Serbia and Morocco, which have been impacted by the ongoing pandemic. In 2019, the Moroccan Ambassador to Serbia, Mohammed Amine Belhaj, said, "The increase in the number of tourists from Serbia to Morocco is our utmost goal, and in this sense, strengthening Morocco's air connectivity and its accessibility is at the heart of our concerns. The cooperation agreement in the air transport sector signed between Morocco and Serbia is the perfect illustration of that, as it demonstrates our determination to open up to this strategic region. This is important for us as it has allowed for several air links to be established recently between countries in the region and Morocco, such as flights to Budapest, Vienna and Warsaw. I hope that this step, which is part of a gradual process, will include Belgrade soon". Low cost airline Air Arabia Maroc considered introducing flights to the Serbian capital, after the national carrier Royal Air Maroc, which showed initial interest in flying from Casablanca, decided against the move. However, entry visas for Serbian nationals into Morocco continue to be a deterrent. In March 2020, Air Serbia was to operate charters to Marrakesh and Fes on behalf of the Kon Tiki Travel tour operator, however, all were cancelled as a result of Covid-19.
With an expansive network to the continent, Turkish Airlines accounted for 25% of all passengers travelling indirectly between Belgrade and Africa. It was followed by Lufthansa and Alitalia, with the latter dominating with transfers to North Africa, particularly Algiers. Despite only launching flights to Belgrade in 2019, Air France also managed to secure a share of the Africa transfer market.
Top five busiest connecting carriers between Belgrade and Africa in 2019
Historically, prior to the collapse of the former Yugoslavia, Belgrade Airport had good connectivity to African markets, particularly in the North of the continent. During the 1990s JAT Yugoslav Airlines was to launch services to Johannesburg in South Africa, however, with the onset of sanctions and war, the flights never materialised.