Swiss unlikely to return to Ljubljana in 2020
Swiss International Air Lines is unlikely to resume its service between Zurich and Ljubljana this year, although a final decision is expected in the coming weeks. In a sign of things to come, the carrier has discontinued sales on the route until the start of the 2021 summer season on March 28, when flights are expected to be restored through its partner Helvetic Airways. Swiss was the first among the Lufthansa Group airlines to commence operations to the Slovenian capital last year following the collapse of national carrier Adria Airways. Daily services were launched on October 17, 2019. Among other members of the Group, Lufthansa will maintain its Munich service throughout the winter, but will not resume its Munich route until summer 2021, while Brussels Airlines plans to restore its Ljubljana operations on October 25.
Earlier this month, Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport urged for the Slovenian government to provide incentives to airlines in order to encourage them to resume operations to the city. “Maintaining existing connections and restoring the rest will be a challenge due to the continuing uncertainty over the health situation in the world. Therefore, carriers are increasingly cautious and selective about which markets they enter. We hope that the country, following the example of other European Union member states, will use funds to promote Slovenia in key markets to help restore its air connectivity which was accessible to locals and foreigners alike prior to the pandemic. Such an incentive would be crucial for the recovery of the Slovenian tourism industry and the economy in general", Ljubljana Airport’s Head of Airline Management, Janez Krašnja, said at the time. The Slovenian government had previously expressed interest in subsidising flights to key Lufthansa hubs - Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich and Brussels - in order to increase frequencies.
Zurich has historically been Ljubljana’s sixth busiest route. Nine carriers presently maintain operations to Ljubljana Airport. They include Air Serbia (Belgrade), Montenegro Airlines (Podgorica), Lufthansa (Frankfurt), Wizz Air (Charleroi), Transavia (Amsterdam), easyJet (Berlin), Air France (Paris), Turkish Airlines (Istanbul) and LOT Polish Airlines (Warsaw). easyJet’s Gatwick flights are set to resume this coming Friday, while it will launch a new service from Luton to the Slovenian capital on October 28. Its service from Stansted to Ljubljana is being discontinued as a result of the base closure on September 1.
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