Adria revises 2009 outlook

16% passenger decline

In the first 6 months of 2009 Slovenia’s Adria Airways carried a total of 503.438 passengers, a decline of 16% compared to the same period last year. The biggest drop in airline traffic was recorded on services to Germany and Brussels, which is chiefly a consequence of Slovenia’s Presidency of the EU, with an overall decline at these destinations of almost 20%. However, to some Ex-Yu markets Adria has recorded growth, especially on services to Skopje, Priština and Sarajevo.

Adria reports that the structure of its passengers has changed drastically compared to last year with 50% more passengers travelling on Economy rather than Business Class. This has caused ticket prices to decline by 6% compared to the first 6 months of 2008. Furthermore, 911 tons of cargo were carried which is 20% less than in 2008. The financial performance has followed the drop in physical turnover, with the first preliminary operating results from January to May showing a full 19% decline in generated revenue compared to the same period last year. In line with this, the company management believes that the airline will end the year with a loss of 3.2 million Euros.

MAT calls for a probe in ACV

MAT - you ain't seen nothing yet

The management of MAT Macedonian Airlines demands that the Macedonian government and the Anti Corruption Commission set up an inquiry into why the Macedonian Civil Aviation Agency (ACV) granted flight permits to Turkish Star Airlines last year and ignored the recommendations by the European Civil Aviation Agency which advised the ACV not to grant the licenses. The Turkish Star Airlines registered itself in Macedonia with 2 Boeing B747-200 freighter aircraft although it rarely operates out of Skopje. Furthermore, the airline was granted a license despite the fact that at the time it did not own an aircraft which is against Macedonian aviation regulations.

The grounded MAT says it can provide additional examples of ACV’s disrespect of European standards and civil aviation. The ongoing feud between MAT and the ACV, which began when the aviation agency grounded MAT’s aircraft has escalated since Mat Airways was not granted a license for operations. Mat Airways was to be a new airline set up by previous MAT Macedonian Airlines owners, however without the millions of Euros of debt the Macedonian national carrier has to its name.

The Russian connection

Soon in Banja Luka and Sarajevo?

Moskovia Airlines, an airline based at Moscow’s Zhukovsky Airport, is planning to introduce scheduled services between the Russian capital and the two largest cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo and Banja Luka. The Bosnian ambassador in Russia confirmed the news. “After Bosnia and Herzegovina signed an air transportation agreement with Russia in April, we immediately noticed great interest on behalf of Russian airlines to begin services to our country”, the Bosnian ambassador said. A meeting between the ambassador and the CEO of Moskovia Airlines is planned for late August and early September when details about the future flights should be finalised.

Moskovia Airlines had previously sent a delegation to Banja Luka Airport when it concluded that it would be able to operate with a Boeing B737-700 on this service if an agreement between the two sides is finalised. The airline is planning to operate 2 weekly flights between Moscow and Banja Luka.

Moskovia Airlines has a fleet of 16 aircraft, all Russian made except for the 1 Boeing B737-700 planned on the services to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

20 million for Croatia Airlines

Success

On Friday, July 24, Croatia Airlines transported its 20 millionth passenger during its almost 20 year history. The passenger, Boris Jakopović, was travelling on a scheduled service from Amsterdam to Zagreb. At Zagreb Airport, Ivan Mišetić, the airline’s CEO handed the passenger 2 return tickets to any destination within the Croatia Airlines network as well as a 4 day hotel accommodation voucher at that destinations.

On Friday, the airline also marked 5 years since becoming a regional Star Alliance member. The airline should become a full member by the end of the year as the alliance plans to shut down its regional network of airlines. Croatia Airlines first operated 20 years ago as Zagal-Zagreb Airlines. While it mostly performed charters it was Croatia’s first airline. Two years later, in 1991, Croatia Airlines was formed and it began operations from Zagreb to Split. A year later, in 1992, the airline began its first scheduled international services, with its first destination being Frankfurt. The airline has flown 11.14 million passengers on international services, 6.71 million on domestic and 2.14 passengers on charter services.

Croatia Airlines transported its millionth passenger in 1994, while from 2000 the airline has had over 1 million passengers annually. The trend will continue this year as well. Croatia Airlines has so far transported 900.000 passengers this year and is expected to break the million mark soon. The airline is experiencing a decline in passenger numbers of 4.7% in the first 6 months of this year, which is still much less then other airlines operating within the Ex-Yu republics.

Sky Srpska closer to reality

Sky Srpska logo

The airline Sky Srpska which is planned to become the national carrier of the Bosnian entity of Republika Srpska, operating out Banja Luka, could be taking off by the end of the year. The government of Republika Srpska is considering purchasing two aircraft and setting up scheduled services out of Banja Luka. The government says that one of its priorities is setting up the airline. “Since aircraft manufacturers are offering the lowest prices, due to the global financial crisis, the ministry of transpiration is considering, through long term credit arrangements, to loan Sky Srpska the means to purchase two aircraft”, a government statement said. The government says that by expanding Sky Srpska new job vacancies would be produced and the establishment of the airline would lead to greater traffic at Banja Luka Airport.

Sky Srpska’s management, last year, said that 2 Embraer aircraft would be of most use to the airline. The airline has already signed agreements with Airports of Montenegro and Jat Airways. Sky Srpska would be the second airline within the entity. In 1999 JAT Yugoslav Airlines set up Air Srpska with 2 ATR72s. The airline operated for a few years but the 2 ATRs were returned to Jat Airways in 2003 when the Serbian carrier began expanding its destination network and needed the aircraft.

Incident at Split Airport

Caution is the parent of safety

Another emergency involving Croatia Airlines’ Dash8 Q400 aircraft has occurred, although this time the incident was much more serious. The incident took place on a scheduled flight from Split to Zagreb carrying among others the Hajduk football team. Immediately upon take off at 100 metres the baggage hold door of the Dash 8 swung open causing a sudden loss of altitude with the aircraft plunging towards the ground. The pilots, however, managed to stabilise the aircraft and immediately turned around and made a safe emergency landing. In a state of shock, the football players and other passengers stood on the runway afterwards as a technical check was carried out on the plane. The aircraft was serviced and able to depart at 14.00, safely landing in Zagreb.

Split Airport management has denied that the incident occurred saying that the light indicating that the baggage hold door was open turned on in the cockpit which led the pilot to request an emergency landing. According to Split Airport the door never opened and the indication light, not the door, was faulty. However, passengers on the flight said that the aircraft plunged with great speed causing panic in the cabin. The pilot then sharply rotated the aircraft and stabilised both the speed and heading.

This is the latest in a series of incidents that have taken place on the new Dash 8 Croatia Airlines fleet. The national airline of Croatia refused to comment on the incident.

Archive files

This is the third in a series of archival news items which are being published each Saturday. The news items date back from the late 1970s until 1989. This collection of news articles have been published in various newspapers and official historic publications.

The following article talks about the DC10 arrivals at Yugoslav Airlines. The first arrival took place on December 12, 1978 but there was some drama involved when the aircraft was chosen.

First DC10-30 arrives

By thorough and comprehensive monitoring of the market and competition, Yugoslav Airlines concluded that the European and Mediterranean sky was already divided and exploited to its maximum and thus new breakthroughs were no longer possible. JAT believed that it could count on 3 -5 million passengers annually on the existing market, a level which it already had achieved by the mid 1970s. Intercontinental operations appeared as the sole possibility for further expansion. Considering the positive experience gained from establishing, primarily charter services to Australia, the United States and Canada, JAT concluded that these routes were worth pursuing. With a view of modernising intercontinental operations, broadening capacities and reducing costs, a decision was made to purchase wide body aircraft.

Comparative studies were carried out in 1976 and 1977 and consultations and negotiations were held with aircraft manufacturers. JAT was considering two models of aircraft: the three engine Douglas DS10-30 and the four engine Boieng B747SP. The shorter body Boeing had a greater range than the classic B747 and when fully loaded was capable of flying from Belgrade to Singapore. Therefore, the obvious choice for the airline was the B747SP and the decision was made to purchase the aircraft. However, just before signing the contract a situation occurred redolent of the late 1960s when instead of the selected aircraft another was bought. Thus, instead JAT opted for the Douglas DC10-30 instead of the Boeing B747SP. Despite a decision by the JAT Workers Council to buy the Boeing, the contract for the first DC10 was signed on June 15, 1977, and for a second on February 2, 1978. JAT had many headaches after choosing the aircraft. Immediately after singing the second contract a strike broke out within the aircraft manufacturer and JAT’s delivery dates were pushed back by nearly 10 months. This meant that JAT would have to make major changes to its 1978 summer season.

After a lengthy wait, the first JAT DC10-30 registered YU-AMA and christened Nikola Tesla, landed at Belgrade Airport on December 12, 1978. With the arrival of a 280 seat aircraft capable of carrying more than 4 tonnes (the quantity annually transported by JAT at the time), along with great comfort and speed, JAT could begin intensely focusing on its long haul operations. Three days later JAT operated the first flight with the DC10 on the service Belgrade-Zagreb-Ljubljana-New York. The DC10 represented great progress, not only in terms of expanding capacities. The aircraft had put forth quite new demands and elevated standards with regard to passenger service. This meant that there would be 13 cabin crew members on board, while the 12 seat first class cabin had revolving seats, tables and allowed 4 passengers to have their meal with each other as if they were in a restaurant. JAT’s DC10s were also equipped with earphones for each passenger, 10 music channels and films were screened in Serbo-Croatian and English.

The second JAT DC10 named Edvard Rusjan and marked YU-AMB arrived on May 16, 1979. Jat would operate with 4 DC10’s by the end of the 1980s. YU-AMB would later operate for Jat Airways until 2005 when it was finally decided to end its carrier in Nimes, France.

Next week: Surviving the oil crisis

Radical moves

The new sheriff, Jat’s Srdjan Radovanović is not winning any fans

Jat Airways’ new CEO, which has been at the job for less than 2 weeks and has avoided media exposure, unlike his predecessor, has made some radical moves in the shadows and has also managed to land himself in a large scale scandal.

It has been revealed that Jat’s new CEO Srdjan Radovanović was the one that ordered the end to all operations on services between Belgrade and Dubrovnik after an agreement was struck between the aviation agencies of the two countries. Furthermore, Radovanović has cancelled the process of leasing 2 next generation B737-700 aircraft. The lease of the two aircraft was supposed to mark the beginning of phase four of the airline’s restructuring programme which was to last until 2013 and outlined the purchase of new aircraft. In his defence, Radovanović states that he asked the previous Jat management a series of questions. He asked if it is rational to lease the two aircraft for 650.000 Euros per month, is it necessary to pay a 1 million Euro deposit for the aircraft and were 2 new aircraft, which would have entered service in September, necessary as the winter season, when airlines reduce capacity and services, starts in October. Radovanović states that he never received an answer from the former Jat CEO Saša Vlaisavljević who is now on the airline’s board of directors. Therefore, Radovanović cancelled the acquisition process. Furthermore, he says he has delayed the entire Dubrovnik service plan for next year. It is obvious that there is bad blood between the previous and current CEO of Jat Airways. Radovanović has never worked in Jat nor does he have any experience in the field of aviation. He was appointed as the CEO of the airline by the Serbian government.

The CEO has also managed to tangle himself in a scandal. Serbian print media discovered that he managed to get his brother, Radovan Radovanović, a news editor at the “24 Hours” newspaper, onto a special government sponsored Jat flight carrying the grieving family members of Serbian tourists who tragically lost their lives in a bus crash on July 16, 2009 en route from Hurghada to Luxor in Egypt. The flight took off from Belgrade to Hurghada on July 20, 2009 in order for the families to claim the bodies of their deceased loved ones. Apparently, despite explicit orders from the Serbian government that no one except for the grieving families should be on the flight, Radovanović got his brother a free ticket thereby bypassing the added security checks. According to the news story the Serbian president was extremely angry at this development while Radovanović refused to comment on the issue. Will this scandal claim any victims only time will tell?

Corruption at Montenegro Airlines

Zoran Djurišić - there is a black sheep in every flock

Podgorica’s chief prosecutor Djurdjina Ivanović has pressed power abuse charges against Zoran Djurišić, the CEO of Montenegro Airlines. The prosecutor says that Djurišić has defrauded the company of several hundreds of thousands of Euros, the national broadcaster of Montenegro reported. Charges have also been brought forward against the legal unit chief in the company Vladimir Djelević. He is charged with irresponsible supervision. Between 2002 and 2006 Djurišić and Djelević reportedly signed unprofitable aircraft lease contracts with Master Airways, without the approval of the airline’s board of directors. Master Airways was to be the Montenegro Airlines subsidiary in Serbia, however it never gained a license. Djelević was supposed to be the CEO of Master Airways. Montenegro Airlines has also failed to report its financial handlings for 2008 even though, as a public company, it is required to do so by law.

Zoran Djurišić shouldn’t worry about his position within the airline at all. As a member of the political party which is currently in power in the country, on Tuesday, Djurišić was elected for another 4 year term as the CEO of the airline.

Fleet renewal needed

Easier said than done

Milan Jovanović, the president of the Jat Airways Pilots Trade Union has said that a new fleet is necessary so that the airline can adequately recover. He believes that extending the lifeline of the current fleet will cost the carrier more than investing into new aircraft. The pilots union welcomed news from the management that the carrier will be leasing 2 Boeing B737-700 next generation aircraft which are expected to enter the airline’s fleet during September. He also stated that the Serbian Government has neglected the national carrier for many years and that it must make a decision whether it wants the airline to survive.

After last year’s privatisation fiasco, Jovanović said that the airline should not be sold in the near future because many issues within the airline still need to be settled before the carrier can look for a partner. He also commented that the situation within the union is stable and that Jat’s pilots are currently happy with their conditions however he noted that many pilots are leaving the airline because they receive better offers from East European and Asian carriers. Despite the fact that Jat has too many employees, the only area it does not have too many employed is the pilot sector. He says that new pilots have been recently employed at Jat. The airline pays its pilots 3.000 Euros per month, which according to Jovanović is quite low when compared with other airlines in the region.

Jat Airways currently has 1.200 employees. The airlines downsized its workforce in the last 12 months by 600. Just before the collapse of Yugoslavia, the airline had nearly 9.000 employees.

Crisis hits Montenegro

The smiles start to fade

It has become clear that the entire aviation industry in the Ex-Yu region has been seriously affected by the global financial crisis. The two airports in Montenegro, Podgorica and Tivat, are no exception to the global trend. Both airports are reporting significantly lower passenger figures for the first 6 months of the year. The news comes at the back of a decline in visitors to the Montenegrin coast.

At Montenegro’s main airport, Podgorica, traffic from January to the end of June, when compared to the same period last year, decreased by 24%. A total of 191.181 passengers passed through the airport’s terminal this year, compared to 236.188 last year. It should also be noted that the number of aircraft operations also decreased which would naturally cause a decline in passenger figures. At Podgorica there were 9% less flights then from January to the end of June last year.

Similar results can be tracked at Tivat Airport. The number of passengers passing through the airport during the first half of the year declined by 22%. There were a total of 171.679 passengers this year compared to 208.823 last. However, the number of flights operated to Tivat significantly declined when compared to 2008 (by 19%). This is because many charter carriers have avoided Tivat this year with less people travelling.

Both Tivat and Podgorica are reporting more arrivals into the country then departures. July and August will be key for both airport’s as it will indicate the extent to which this year’s tourist season has been affected.

No growth in June

No improvement at Jat

Despite its hub airport, Belgrade, hosting this year’s largest sporting event, Jat Airways did not manage to increase passenger figures as the global financial crisis drags on. Jat transported a total of 108.959 passengers in June which is 23% less than in June 2008. The average cabin occupancy rate stood at 57%, compared to 64% in June 2008. To Jat’s most important market, Montenegro, flight operations were decreased by a hefty 33%, naturally decreasing passenger figures between Belgrade, Podgorica and Tivat by 44%. Jat’s Euro-Mediterranean services also saw a 16% passenger decrease this June when compared to last year. Jat’s B737-300 fleet spent the most time in the air. In the first six months of this year Jat transported a total of 451.779 passengers which is 22% less than the same period last year.

The airline also reported that it suspended flights to Dubrovnik because it was not given enough guarantees that the flights would be given the green light by the Croatian Civil Aviation Agency, in Belgrade last week. The Croatian aviation authority says it gave enough assurances to the Serbian carrier.

Skywings International

Skywings International B737-300 now in Skopje

A new airline will grace Macedonia’s skies today when Skywings International begins operating scheduled services to nearly all former destinations of the now, almost defunct, national carrier of Macedonia. Skywings International will initially operate with 1 Boeing B737-300 (fitted with winglets). The aircraft has been leased from a German airline, Hamburg International, which will operate Skywings and it is expected that all flights from Skopje and Ohrid will be operated by its own staff. The aircraft has already arrived in Skopje and has received a new Macedonian registration - Z3-AAJ.

The airline was to be launched today at 07.00 with an inaugural flight to Podgorica, according to the airline's website. However, the flights have not been listed at the airport in Skopje or Podgorica and neither has it been listed in the largest ticketing reservation system called Amadeus. However, the flights can be booked on the airline’s website.

The airline was registered in Macedonia in April this year and its CEO is Dragan Dojčinovski. The airline is also apparently operating a flight to Berlin at 09.45 today although it has not been listed anywhere except on the airline’s website. It will also operate flights to Brussels, Dusseldorf, Cologne, Rome, Stuttgart and Hamburg from Skopje, mostly once per week. From Ohrid it should begin operating flights from July 23 to Amsterdam while flights to Dusseldorf are expected to begin on July 25.

In case of any new developments of this relatively unknown airline, it will be updated on the blog.

Archive files

This is the second in a series of archival news items which are being published each Saturday. The news items date back from the late 1970s until 1989. This collection of news articles have been published in various newspapers and official historic publications.

The following article gives an idea of some of the unique initiatives the national carrier of Yugoslavia had. The special concept the following article talks about took place in 1979.

First paintings auction over the Atlantic

The history of Yugoslav Airlines has recorded scores of flights whose importance, scope and public interest surpassed national boundaries. The auction of artworks onboard JAT aircraft at an altitude of 33.000 feet may be singled out in terms of originality and exclusivity.
Less than two months after the first modern DC10 joined the JAT fleet, on February 16, 1979 a unique and historic event in global civil aviation took place at 33.000 feet over the Atlantic Ocean. JAT announced the first auction of paintings ever to take place aboard an aircraft. The first flight to enjoy such an honour was JU500 from Belgrade to New York. Therefore, collectors and art enthusiasts were in a position to bid during the course of the flight and buy renowned artworks. A tag indicating that the painting had been purchased in the first “Gallery over the Atlantic” was placed at the back of each artwork. As a special token, each painting was inscribed with the altitude at which it was purchased.

The idea was met with remarkable public interest both in Yugoslavia and abroad. This was a good signal to the management that many of these auctions should be organised in the future. Thus, JAT organised a total of 11 auctions of paintings from 1979 to 1989. All of the auctions were held on flights to New York, except for the last one which took place on a flight to Los Angeles. The special significance of these auctions was that the net proceeds from the sale all went to charity organisations. Only the artworks by renowned, academic, local Yugoslav painters were entered in the auction. More than 300 paintings by over 150 artists were entered for the eleven auctions held once annually (with the exception of 1989 when two auctions were held). Some of the artists which entered their paintings for the auction were Milan Konjović, Peđa Milosavljevič, Vladimir Veličković, Olja Ivanjicki, Mersad Berber, Dušan Džamonja, Mića Popović, Ljuba Popović, Ivo Vojvodić, Nikola Rajzer, Jože Cijuha, Jože Tisnikar, Ivan Rabuzin, Vangel Naumovski and many others.

Passengers on these flights, who were mostly travelling as part of the JAT Air Lift package tours, included many domestic and international art lovers as well as numerous collectors and gallery owners from Italy, Austria, Germany, France, Great Britain and other countries.

All of the paintings found in the “Gallery over the Atlantic” had previously been displayed in galleries in Zagreb, Belgrade, Novi Sad, Ljubljana and Sarajevo. Upon arriving in New York and Los Angeles the paintings were put on display in galleries in both cities.

Next week: First JAT DC10 arrives

Priština sees profit hike

Priština Airport

Priština Airport saw significant rise in earnings in the first half of 2009 despite the global economic downturn. The airport's executives said the net-earnings amounted to 3.5 million Euros in the first six months this year, up 8% from a year ago. The management of Priština Airport described the year of 2008 as a "golden year" given the fact that net-earnings hit 7 million Euros and the number of passengers exceeded 1 million. The number of flights rose nearly 17% in the first six months of 2009. In 2008, the number of flight stood at 2.105, while this year the number of flights stands at 2.454. Prištoina also saw a 4% increase in the number of passengers compared with the same period in 2008. Airport executives said Priština was able to hold its ground well in one of the worst economic crisis ever. The airport expects good results during the summer season as well as in the second half of 2009.

The year could get better for the airport after Air Berlin, Germany’s second largest airline, announced its wishes to become a prime carrier of Kosovo. It will start off by introducing 10 weekly flights between Priština and Zurich. The date of the new flights is yet to be set. The disputed province has no prime airline and all attempts to create one have failed in the past. The Albanian Belle Air is the leading airline flying out of Priština.

Belgrade prepares for passenger flood

Terminal 1 at Belgrade Airport

Belgrade’s Nikola Tesla Airport is already preparing for 2010 when it expects to break certain records when it comes to the number of passengers that will use the airport. After the European Union announced yesterday that Serbian citizens and passport holders will no longer need visas to travel to countries of the European Union, a mass increase in travel is expected. Until now Serbian citizens needed visas to enter any EU state. Obtaining a visa for most citisenss was extremely difficult, especially for students. However from January 1, 2010 Serbian citizens will able to travel visa free to any EU country (with the exception of the United Kingdom and Ireland) and will also be able to travel visa free to a few other non-EU states (within Europe) such as Norway, Iceland, Lichtenstein and Switzerland. It is also expected that from January the free sky agreement will finally be in force in Serbia. This agreement, ratified a few months ago by the Serbian parliament will allow any airline to fly to Serbia without the possibility of not being able to obtain a license. Logically, the number of airline operators to Belgrade will increase.

When all of these factors are taken into account, the largest airport in the Ex-Yu region will have to increase capacity. The airport plans to reopen terminal 1 after 3 years. The terminal was closed in 2006 when the refurbished multi million Euro terminal 2 was opened. The original plan was to keep terminal 1 open if Montenegro did not declare independence. That year, Montenegro voted on the issue of whether it would stay within a state union with Serbia. If the scenario turned out that Montenegro would stay within the state union, terminal 1 would have been separated from terminal 2 and it would have been used exclusively for flights between Belgrade, Tivat, Podgorica and Niš. Since Montenegro voted for its independence the terminal was closed.

From 2010 terminal 1 will be used exclusively by low cost airlines, with Niki expected to be the largest low cost operator from Belgrade. The terminal would also be used by charter airlines. The airport’s authorities have decided to test the terminal with check in desks opening for Nouvelair, Atlasjet, Pegasus Airlines and some Jat Airways flights. Passengers that will be checking in at terminal 1 for a Jat flight are those travelling on the airline’s charter summer services. Together terminal 1 and 2 have a capacity of 7 million.

The new visa liberalisation from January 1, 2010 will also apply for citizens of Macedonia and Montenegro. Croatian citizens do not need visas to travel to the European Union, and naturally Slovenian citizens, as European Union citizens do not require visas either. The only country in the former Yugoslavia, after January 1, that will remain with visa restrictions are those in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Before the civil wars a Yugoslav passport allowed visa free travel to almost any country.

End of MAT, birth of Mat Airways?

A cat has nine lives - will MAT be as lucky?

Macedonia’s MAT will be shut down in September if the carrier does not hand its financial reports to the Macedonian Civil Aviation Agency (CAA). According to the agency the reports were due to be handed in on June but the CAA has given the carrier another 2 months. It is not expected that the grounded Macedonian carrier will follow through. The airline’s owners have already applied to register a new company named Mat Airways, with a leased Antonov 24 aircraft from an unknown airline called Airlift Service. The CAA has said that the airline cannot receive an operating license due to Macedonian aviation regulations which state that in order to be registered as an airline in the country the company must have at least one fully owned aircraft. If Mat Airways does not own an aircraft by July 30, 2009, its application will be terminated. Mat Airways is registered as a Cypriot company with its seat in Skopje. Another company, from Turkey, has also applied for a license.

Meanwhile, the demand in air traffic weakened in Macedonia, with passenger volumes falling 11%, the CAA director Zoran Krstevski said on Monday. "The drop is within the European air traffic decline and has been prompted by the situation on Macedonia's market", Krstevski explained. "As you know, MAT has had no aircraft for some time and it does not operate regular services, and it is also banned from flying to several countries due to debt issues in connection with Eurocontrol", Krstevski said.

In a poll conducted by this blog some time ago where a total of 56 people voted, some 61% believed that MAT would cease all operations by the end of the year. In a more recent poll in which 104 people participated, 55% said that the best solution for MAT would be a takeover by Serbia’s Jat Airways.

Give a little – get a littleUPDATE: Jat dumps Dubrovnik

Problem solved

Serbian and Croatian officials met yesterday to discuss the issue of licenses which has developed into a mini scandal at the beginning of the month when Serbia’s Jat Airways resumed flights from Belgrade to Dubrovnik after 18 years, only to be ceased after a week due to the fact that the airline did not attain the needed license from Croatian authorities. After a media storm which ensued in Serbia the country’s ministry of infrastructure and the Croatian ministry of sea, transport and infrastructure met yesterday in Belgrade and talks will be finalised today when Jat is expected to receive a license to operate flights from Belgrade to Dubrovnik and Pula while Croatia Airlines will be given a license to operate flights from Zagreb to Belgrade and Niš, although it is up to the Croatian national carrier if it will take up the offer. From Wednesday all negotiations regarding services between the two countries will be in the hands of the two national carriers. Serbian officials say that that the air traffic agreement could be initiated as early as this week, but that this depends on the readiness of both sides. “The negotiation strategy not only with Croatia, but with all other countries as well, is to make one institutional and legal framework through political negotiations and then, via commercial agreements, between carriers practically identify which lines are justified commercially and see whether they want to fly them”, the Serbian official said.

Another issue to be discussed is the matter the Croatian ministry has in regards to Serbian air space. It wants Serbia to allow aircraft landing at Osijek Airport to use Serbian airspace when landing as if it were Croatian airspace. Due to the close proximity of Osijek to the Serbian boarder it would be extremely beneficial to the airport’s authorities. The Croatian side stated that this was on e of the main topics of discussion, but it remains unknown whether this issue will be resolved completely in the coming hours.

Croatian and Serbian traffic experts will talk about regulating relations by water, railway and highway travel as well, specifically regarding licenses for highway transport. Croatia and Serbia will regulate air travel between each other for the time in history.

UPDATE

Jat has received a temporary license to resume flights to Duborvnik during this summer season however the airline has chosen not to return to Dubrovnik this summer. Flights to Pula continue as normal. The Osijek airspace issue has also been resolved and the details will be finalised next Monday in Belgrade when members of the Croatian Airspace Control Agency arrive . Croatia Airlines can commence flights to Belgrade if it wishes to do so.

No recovery

Zadar Airport passenger terminal

As the global financial crisis continues to bite into the aviation industry, airports in Croatia have not reported improvement when it comes to the volume of passengers at their airports in the month of June. The only airports which have improved on their June 2008 results are Zadar, which is reporting exceptional growth, and Osijek.

Croatia’s largest airport, Zagreb, saw passenger numbers decline by 6.9% compared to the same month last year. Transiting passengers also declined by 78%. In total in June 182.342 passengers passed through Zagreb Airport in June, compared to 195.817 in June 2008. Split’s traffic is down by 11.6% with aircraft operation also down by 2.9% when compared to last June. It had a total of 108.351 passengers. Pula, which started the year off strongly, is the biggest loser in the month of June. The airport saw a decline of nearly 18% in passenger terms when compared to June 2008. Despite aircraft operations increasing by an impressive 5.6%, it wasn’t enough to lure more passengers than it did last year. It had a total of 23.712 passengers last month. Rijeka is reporting a decline of 11.7% while Dubrovnik was also unable to escape the negative trend and reported a 5.3% decrease when compared to June 2008.

However, it’s not all doom and gloom. Zadar Airport continues with its impressive run of results by reporting a 16.6% passenger growth in June 2009. The airport handled 17.029 passengers compared to 14.604 in June 2008. Aircraft operations increased by 2.8%. Despite reporting a decline in aircraft operations of 5.2%, Osijek Airport managed to improve on last June’s results and reported a 1% passenger growth.

Passenger figures at Croatian airports:
· January
· February
· March
· April
· May

Firmly on the ground

Engine problem

MAT Macedonian Airlines will not be flying anytime soon. The airline’s sole aircraft, a Boeing B737-500 has been grounded by the Macedonian Aviation Authority due to a faulty front leg of the aircraft. Now the aviation authority has said that MAT’s management has hidden from them the fact that an engine is heavily damaged. According to the Macedonian Aviation Authority, the technical division of Jat Airways in Belgrade found that one of the engines was heavily damaged and informed the management of the national carrier of Macedonia. However, the airline failed to mention this to the aviation authority.

MAT has asked the country’s aviation body to issue a flying license for the aircraft to return from Belgrade, where it has been serviced, to Skopje. The aviation authority responded to this by saying that it had contacted the engine manufacturer which said that the aircraft cannot fly with the current state of one of its engines. The Macedonian Aviation Authority has requested for the engine to be replaced. MAT has already replaced the front leg of its aircraft.

Macedonian media is speculating that MAT’s owners will register a new company, named Mat Airways, in partnership with Serbia’s Jat Airways. MAT Macedonian Airlines has been grounded since April this year.

Archive files

This is the first in a series of archival news items which will be published each Saturday. The news items date back from the late 1970s until 1989. This collection of news articles have been published in various newspapers and official historic publications.

The year is 1979, which for the aviation world and Yugoslav Airlines itself was far from smooth. The aviation industry had just begun to recover from the global oil shock. JAT, like all DC10 operators, was forced to ground its newly arrived DC10s due to the crash of American Airlines flight 191. This threw the airline’s long haul services into disarray. The airline also feared that passenger numbers would decline by the end of the year, especially on domestic services. However, JAT did manage to post record passenger figures by the end of the year, reintroduce the DC10s and was still riding on some major successes from 1978 including the famous birth of Jugoslav “Jatko” Todev on a flight from Belgrade to Sydney, which brought worldwide media attention for the airline and the introduction of the most modern booking system. 1979 was also the year before JAT underwent mass expansion, service and fleet improvement.

The following news item was published in 1979 at the beginning of that year’s summer season. It was published in the 141st edition of JAT’s “Newspaper of labour organisation”. The following is the transcript of the news article:

Responsibility fails test

Approximately 10 days ago, Gradimir Mičić, vice president of JAT’s labour board had many reasons to be unhappy and angry. With a few colleagues from the management board (and the author of this article), in the early morning hours, he commenced an ad hock “inspection” of JAT’s aircraft. It is the first of its kind at the airline (and let’s hope, not the last). He found out something that all of us at Yugoslav Airlines knew and something passengers have warned us about. The interior look and cleanliness of our aircraft, prepared for morning departures, as well as customer service cannot be commended and are not up to standard for a world renowned company like JAT.

We must introduce rigorous checks on our aircraft and hold accountable all those that have failed to provide the highest standard of service on our aircraft. This has been agreed at the latest meeting of the airline’s management board. This situation must be resolved as soon as possible so JAT can become a leader in customer service and the nice look of its cabins rather than just the operation of modern aircraft which keeps us at the top of world standards today. So what is this all about? The night before the inspection at 23.59, a Boeing B707 was schedule to depart to America. However, due to technical problems the flight’s departure time was delayed until 07.00, with passengers accommodated in Hotel Yugoslavia. From our technical division we were told the aircraft would be ready to depart in the morning. At 6.00 we found the B707 in front of the hanger without mechanics or anyone working on the aircraft. Offcourse, the plane did not depart on time. Passengers were brought to the airport at 06.00 (woke up at 05.00) without any need. Work began at 07.00 and the aircraft departed at 11.00. We can only imagine the dissatisfaction of our passengers. Another example would be a domestic DC9 flight which was to depart at 06.30. At 06.07 the mechanics arrived to do regular pre-take off checks and catering was loaded on the aircraft at 06.13. The pilot turned on the engines at 06.20. We believe that the technicians and the catering should have arrived at least half an hour earlier. Why they didn’t – we don’t know. A third example would be a flight arriving from the Middle East early in the morning. The technical report the cabin crew had to fill in was not done regularly throughout the flight and worst still it was soaked in coffee. We also found that on the DC9, registered JY-AKF (leased from Jersey European Aiways), the refrigerator was not working which means that drinks were not served cold and there was no ice.

We must improve the situation immediately as we face strong competition. We cannot allow articles titled “Fly JAT if you have nothing better to do”, which appeared in a Belgrade newspaper, to ruin our image. We will act at once.

NEXT WEEK: World first – artworks auctioned over the Atlantic on JAT.

Jat optimistic about Dubrovnik

By bus until July 20

The Serbian Government and Jat Airways are optimistic that flights between Belgrade and Dubrovnik, resumed after 18 years a few days ago only to be ceased after 2 flights, will commence on July 20. The Serbian minister for infrastructure (under whose jurisdiction is air transportation), Milutin Mrkonjić said that the Jat Airways license issue for flights between Belgrade and Dubrovnik will be resolved next week when the ministries from Serbia and Croatia meet in Belgrade. Mrkonjić said that “... we want to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. We proposed meetings between our ministries to take place this week but the Croatian delegation is currently in Brussels and therefore the meeting will take place next week. We will resolve the issue between the Belgrade – Dubrovnik flights but also for flights between Belgrade and Zagreb”.

The chairman of Jat’s management board, Saša Vlaisavljević, said that flights to Dubrovnik have to be put in front of politics and that they have been introduced primarily because of the will from passengers. Tonči Peović, Dubrovnik Airport CEO, said that he hopes the issue will be resolved as soon as possible. According to Serbian media reports the same mood resonates amongst most citizens of Dubrovnik.

Yesterday’s flight from Belgrade to Dubrovnik as well as the flight on Monday (July 13) has been cancelled. Jat has compensated passengers that were to travel on these dates although those that still wanted to enjoy their summer in Dubrovnik were flown to Tivat where a bus service to the seaside Croatian town was organised.

¡Viva España!

Twice per week to Zagreb

Only a few weeks after Croatia Airlines introduced flights from Zagreb to Barcelona, Spain’s national carrier Iberia has inaugurated services from Madrid to the Croatian capital a few days ago. The new service to Zagreb will be the only new route the airline will introduce in 2009. The service will operate two times per week on a seasonal summer basis. Iberia becomes the third airline to operate services between Spain and Zagreb after Croatia Airlines and Dubrovnik Airlines which now offers services to Madrid as well.

On its inaugural flight, the Iberia Airbus A320 aircraft had a total of 140 passengers from Madrid, mostly tourists. The return leg had 71 passengers on board. The flights will operate until September 20. At a reception on the occasion of the first flight, Iberia Commercial Director Manuel Lopez Colmenarejo said that depending on the performance of the flights they might continue throughout the year. All flights details can be found here. Iberia is one of Europe’s largest airlines although it has suffered significant losses since the global financial crisis arrived in Spain. The airline is expected to be taken over by One World alliance partner British Airways. Despite the turbulent year, Iberia still records one of the highest cabin occupancy rates in Europe and has been one of the largest profit making airlines on the continent in recent years.

B&H strengthens cooperation

Code sharing with Turkish Airlines

After connecting its hub Sarajevo to many new European cities in the past few months, B&H Airlines has continued to work hard to improve some of its services. On July 3, B&H Airlines entered a mutual code share agreement with its partner and owner Turkish Airlines. The new agreement allows for the two airlines on services between Sarajevo and Istanbul ,and vice versa, to sell tickets on each other’s flights and opens the possibility for further code share and special pro rate agreements.

The following flights have fallen under the new agreement:

Route	TK Codeshare	JA Operating
Istanbul - Sarajevo	TK8035	JA103
Sarajevo - Istanbul	TK8036	JA102

Route	JA Codeshare	TK Operating
Istanbul - Sarajevo	JA2103 JA2105	TK1423 TK1425
Sarajevo - Istanbul	JA2102 JA2104	TK1424 TK1426

Meanwhile, B&H Airlines will soon introduce online ticketing, which will allow passengers to purchase their tickets online. All other Ex-Yu airlines already have this feature available on their websites. B&H Airlines expects to take delivery of a second Boeing B737-400 by the beginning of the 2009/10 winter season, starting in late October. B&H Airlines, like other regional rivals, has reported a significant drop in passenger figures this year.

Air wars – the epilogue

To Dubrovnik after all

After the squabbling which took place between the Serbian and Croatian aviation authorities, when Jat Airways’ license for the flights from Belgrade to Dubrovnik was revoked, there now seems to be a resolution on the horizon. The ministries responsible for transportation from both countries will meet on the 13th and 14th of July. The Serbian ministry for infrastructure, under which transpiration falls a part of, expects that an agreement regarding aviation licenses between Serbia and Croatia should be finalised and agreed upon by July 17. In the meantime, flights should continue to operate between Belgrade and Dubrovnik as normal. The Serbian delegation will also suggest for flights between Zagreb and Belgrade to begin and to be operated by Croatia Airlines.

Yesterday there were a total of 40 passengers on board Jat’s flight to Dubrovnik, which is less than expected. This is because many people decided to refund their tickets following the public dispute. A Jat spokesperson has said that if the issue is not resolved passengers will be reimbursement or, if they choose, will be flown to Tivat where bus transfer to Dubrovnik will be organised.

Air wars

Dubrovnik Airport

Loudly billed as the big "return after 18 years", Jat Airways’ tourist charters from Belgrade to the Croatian resort of Dubrovnik have been scrapped after only two flights, authorities in Zagreb confirmed last Friday. Only two "promotional" flights have been agreed, one completed on Thursday and the other planned for later today, Croatian transport ministry spokeswoman Marinka Haluzan said. The other 664 passengers which have purchased their tickets on the Belgrade to Dubrovnik service will now be refunded. While Serbian authorities blame their Croatian counterparts for a lack of cooperation, the Croatian Civil Aviation Agency has blamed their Serbian colleagues for the same reson. The Croatian stance is that flights between Belgrade and Dubrovnik cannot be allowed because there is no bilateral air agreement between the two countries. This is despite the fact that flights from Belgrade to Pula have not and will not be affected. Serbian officials said talks would continue next week. In Zagreb, Haluzan said Croatia "in the past insisted on the air traffic agreement ... it is unclear why the other side did not want it”.

On the other hand a Jat spokesperson said that the airline has held talks with the Croatian authorities and that it had been given a license to operate flights to Dubrovnik until the end of August, only for its license to be revoked on Thursday afternoon (July 2). The airline said it is doing everything in its power to maintain its services to Dubrovnik. It will propose, tomorrow, for the airline to receive a license for two flights each week just prior to the actual flight. Jat has said it also strongly supports Croatia Airlines to commence services from Zagreb to Belgrade in hope that this could soften the Croatian Aviation Authority’s stance. However, Croatia Airline has confirmed that it currently has no interest to fly to Serbia. “The countries in the region which Croatia Airlines does not serve are our potential future markets. Currently there is no bilateral air agreement between the two countries and thus there cannot be any cooperation between the two national carriers”, the airline’s PR manager said.

Marinka Haluzan, from the Croatian transportation ministry, said that “charter flights are not a part of air traffic agreements between countries, only regular airline flights”. Talks between the two countries are complex as they involve issues of ownership over airports and other companies which remain open from the days of the former Yugoslavia. Jat Airways has said that interest for the Dubrovnik flights have been greater than the interest generated when flights to Pula were launched last year. The airline’s spokesperson said that the only problem is that citizens from Pula have a much greater wish to visit Belgrade than those living in Dubrovnik.

Tivat loss

Tivat

Tivat Airport has become the latest airport in the Ex-Yu region to be affected by the global financial crisis. Despite this seaside Montenegrin airport expanding its apron recently so more aircraft can be accommodated, the airport reported a drop in aircraft operations as well as passenger figures. In spite of the peak season which is currently unfolding, the airport is reporting the same volume of traffic and passengers this summer while for the first six months of the year the airport has reported more than 17% drop in passenger movement. A total of 1.488 aircraft operated out of Tivat until the end of June this year, while a total of 171.000 passengers used the airport. That is 17.8% less passengers than in the first half of last year. The number of aircraft operating out of Tivat has decreased by only 3, meaning that the total aircraft operations amount to 569. During June alone there were 840 passengers less than June 2008.

The busiest day for Tivat Airport is usually a Saturday. So far this year, June 28 has been the busiest day with 7.380 passengers handled and 47 aircraft landing during the day. On average the airport handles 20 aircraft.

Tivat Airport is heavily used by charter airlines, particularly from Russia, during the summer months as it is the quickest way tourists can get to towns such as Budva. Recently, Montenegro Airlines has started focusing more on the airport by introducing services to Copenhagen, Priština, Niš and Rome.

Jat’s fleet renewal begins

Soon with the flying dots

Serbia’s Jat Airways has decided to lease 2 Boeing B737-700 aircraft, which will enter its fleet during September 2009. The airline from which the aircraft will be leased from has already been selected. One of the aircraft is a B737-700 with winglets currently operating for AeroMexico. It was made in 2004. The lease of the two aircraft is part of the airline’s 5 year development plan. On July 9, the airline’s management will make further decisions on the fate of its current and future fleet. More new aircraft will be added during 2010.

EX-YU Aviation News Blog can exclusively reveal that Jat will be returning its sole Boeing B737-400 once the 700 series aircraft enter service. The B737-400 registered YU-AOS (made in 1989) has been with Jat since 2004 and is leased from CIT Aerospace. The B737-700s will be deployed to popular destinations such as London, Moscow and Zurich. The new fleet addition will make Jat’s fleet more reliable after mechanical problems caused major delays during this week, emphasising the fleet shortage Jat is currently facing. At this present time there are no plans to introduce the B737-700s on Jat’s longest service, to Abu Dhabi, although major changes are expected on this line starting in spring 2010 - aircraft and frequency wise.

Meanwhile, the airline continues to refurbish its B737-300 fleet. A further 2 aircraft have received new seats in economy class.

Dubrovnik scandal

Easy comes – easy goes

Serbia’s Jat Airways which yesterday resumed services to the Croatian town of Dubrovnik after 18 years has been forced to end all ticket sales after the Croatian Civil Aviation Agency decided to revoke Jat’s license to Dubrovnik. The Croatian aviation authority will allow the Serbian carrier to operate one more flight (on Tuesday) after which it will no longer have right to operate to the seaside town. The CEO of Dubrovnik Airport says that Croatia and Serbia have no bilateral air agreement and therefore the service will be blocked. Jat’s management announced that the ministries that are in charge of aviation in both countries will meet on July 7, when the airline hopes that this problem will be resolved. Jat has already sold 800 tickets to Dubrovnik and if the service is not resumed in time for next Thursdays flight the airline will transport passengers to Tivat in Montenegro where a bus shuttle will transfer them to their final destination. Dubrovnik was first connected to Belgrade by air in 1936 when Aeroput, Jat’s predecessor, operated the line via Sarajevo. After World War Two services to Dubrovnik were resumed on the service Belgrade – Sarajevo – Dubrovnik – Herceg Novi. On June 6, 1956 the first international service was operated from Dubrovnik while in 1983 Jat began operating the first intercontinental flights from Dubrovnik, connecting the city to Toronto.

Meanwhile, Srđan Radovanović has finally been officially named as Jat’s new CEO. He has not worked in Jat before however, with a law degree, has worked in some of Serbia’s largest state owned companies.

Visit tomorrow for exclusive information regarding Jat’s fleet renewel

Dubrovnik re-launch

Dubrovnik

After 18 years, Jat Airways' flight JU720 will depart for Dubrovnik from Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport at 12.50 CET. It will be the first time since 1991 that the company has made that journey possible for its passengers. People from Serbia will be able to head to a city that is often described as the pearl of the Adriatic. A statement from the carrier earlier this year said that officials from Jat Airways and Dubrovnik Airport met on May 13 to decide that a new service between the Serbian capital and one of Croatia's most popular tourist spots would get underway this summer. Initial plans are to provide the route to passengers twice a week, on Thursday after midday and Tuesday mornings. The Belgrade to Dubrovnik link-up comes after Jat Airways restarted flights from the Serbian capital to Pula last year after a lengthy period of no service. As a result, today not only sees a flight to Dubrovnik from Belgrade, but also a flight to Pula (operated at 11.55 CET). Jat plans to introduce a third Croatian city to its destination network, Osijek, from summer 2010.

Meanwhile, there seems to be significant development on Jat’s fleet renewal and new aircraft might join the fleet earlier than expected. There will be more news regarding these development by the end of the week.

Tivat expansion

Tivat Airport passenger terminal

The second largest airport in Montenegro is being expanded both service and capacity wise. A week after B&H Airlines launched flights from Podgorica to Skopje, Montenegro Airlines has launched flights to the Macedonian capital from Tivat. The flights, which operate 4 times per week, were launched last Sunday, on June 28. There were a total of 70 passengers to and from Skopje on Montenegro Airlines’ Fokker F100. On this occasion Lela Agović from As-trans Komerc, the representative of Montenegro Airlines in Skopje, said that the new line was established at the beginning of the summer tourist season and Macedonian citizens are very interested in it. She added that Montenegro Airlines has harmonised its flights from Skopje in a way that passengers from Macedonia can transfer to other flights towards European capitals. Montenegro Airlines recently launched services to from Tivat to Paris and Niš while it established services to Copenhagen and Rome yesterday. Flights from Tivat to Priština will begin on July 5. Montenegro Airlines has begun using Tivat as a testing ground for future services from Podgorica. If a certain service is successful from Tivat, it will be ended at the end of October and transferred to Podgorica.


Meanwhile, the general aviation parking at Tivat Airport has been expanded. The investment was worth 2.5 million Euros. The new expanded parking apron allows 6 smaller general aviation aircraft to be parked or two larger aircraft such as the Airbus A320 and the B737.