Qatar Airways eyes further EX-YU growth
Qatar Airways plans to further grow its operations in the former Yugoslavia in 2020 and 2021. As previously reported, the airline will introduce seasonal flights to Dubrovnik this summer, which will be maintained up to five times per week. The carrier is also in the process of evaluating potential operations to Ljubljana and Pristina. The Doha-based airline has been considering flights to the Slovenian capital since 2017. The company’s CEO, Akbar Al Baker, previously said, “Ljubljana is being looked at. We have many destinations we plan to operate with our narrowbodies”. The General Manager of Ljubljana Airport, Zmago Skobir, noted, “The East continues to be another big market for us which is mostly served through Turkish Airlines. In my opinion, we do need flights to the Arabian Peninsula, which would act as a transfer point to other destinations. These are primarily Dubai and Doha. We have been working hard on this matter over the past six years, and we expect progress very soon”.
Qatar Airways recently held talks with officials from Kosovo, with the Kosovan Ambassador to Qatar meeting with Mr Al Baker late last year. The two discussed potential operations between Doha and Pristina. Several weeks later, Qatar Airways issued a call for its first crew recruitment event in Pristina. “We feel that the Balkans are underserved and we would like to provide countries in the Balkans with a five star product they deserve. That is why we are focusing on such markets with high opportunities, which benefits both sides, the people in these countries and Qatar Airways as well. We will continue to seek opportunities in this region”, the carrier noted. Qatar Airways has announced its full list of new destinations, which are due to launch this year. However, the airline will also outline new routes for 2021 over the coming months and has hinted at developments during the upcoming largest tourism trade fair in the world - the ITB Berlin - taking place next month.
This summer, the Qatari carrier will keep frequencies and capacity on its existing routes in the former Yugoslavia unchanged. It will continue to serve Zagreb twice per day with its Airbus A320 aircraft, while Belgrade will be maintained up to ten times per week with one daily A321 service and three weekly A320 flights. "Qatar Airways constantly reviews market conditions in order to respond to passenger demand and the increase in flights to Belgrade to a ten weekly operation was a direct reflection of this. While we are unable to comment directly on future commercial plans, it is true that in a number of markets, where we have increased operations from a daily, to then ten weekly operation, we have then seen an increase to a double daily operation", the company said. The Oneworld alliance member recently added its first codeshare partner on a route to the former Yugoslavia - SriLankan Airlines to Belgrade - with more cities to follow during the implementation of the second phase of the deal later this year. Services to Sarajevo and Skopje will continue to operate four times per week this summer with A320 jets.
This summer, the Qatari carrier will keep frequencies and capacity on its existing routes in the former Yugoslavia unchanged. It will continue to serve Zagreb twice per day with its Airbus A320 aircraft, while Belgrade will be maintained up to ten times per week with one daily A321 service and three weekly A320 flights. "Qatar Airways constantly reviews market conditions in order to respond to passenger demand and the increase in flights to Belgrade to a ten weekly operation was a direct reflection of this. While we are unable to comment directly on future commercial plans, it is true that in a number of markets, where we have increased operations from a daily, to then ten weekly operation, we have then seen an increase to a double daily operation", the company said. The Oneworld alliance member recently added its first codeshare partner on a route to the former Yugoslavia - SriLankan Airlines to Belgrade - with more cities to follow during the implementation of the second phase of the deal later this year. Services to Sarajevo and Skopje will continue to operate four times per week this summer with A320 jets.
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