Serbia to fund ten new routes from Niš
The Serbian Ministry for Construction, Transport and Infrastructure has allocated funds to subsidise the launch of ten new routes from Niš Constantine the Great Airport. The Serbian government will adopt new regulation tomorrow for the introduction of Public Service Obligation (PSO) flights from the south-east Serbian city. Furthermore, the government will determine ten European points which will be linked with Niš under the PSO contract, after which it will launch tender procedures for each, with airlines to be invited to submit their bids. "We expect for Air Serbia to take part in the public call, which will be open to all airlines", Zoran Ilić, the Assistant Minister for Transport, said.
Public Service Obligation flights are applied throughout the European Union and are imposed on routes which are vital for the economic development of the region they serve but are essentially loss making. If no carrier is interested in operating a particular service, the state may restrict access to the route to a single air carrier and compensate its operational losses. The EU stipulates that the operator must be chosen through a public tender. Within the former Yugoslavia, Croatia has PSO contracts in place for several domestic routes. The ten new services from Niš Airport are expected to be launched this year.
Niš Airport is currently served by three airlines - Wizz Air, Ryanair and Swiss International Air Lines - which maintain flights to ten destinations. All three carriers have signed contracts with the airport until 2021 and 2022, which include a low three euro fee for handling, landing and passenger services. On March 31, Ryanair will discontinue its flights between Niš and Weeze, while Wizz Air will resume operations to Malmo on April 17 after suspending the service earlier this month. According to the Egyptian Embassy in Belgrade, a local Egyptian carrier is set to launch flights from the Egyptian coast, tipped to be Marsa Alam, to Niš in May. Last September, the Serbian President, Aleksandar Vučić, said Air Serbia was in talks over the opening of several routes from Niš Airport. "We are talking and negotiating with Air Serbia over the introduction of several international routes from Niš. I am convinced that this will be very important news in the coming period", the President said at the time.
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