EX-YU markets see Ukraine flight boom
Markets across the former Yugoslavia will be better connected to Ukraine than ever before by mid-December with four capital cities to boast links to Kiev with scheduled year-round flights. Ukrainian carrier Windrose Airlines is leading the way in improving connectivity, however, others are set to join too. Ukraine is a rapidly growing aviation market and has a strong tourism potential with more than six million foreign tourists annually.
Windrose began its expansion in the former Yugoslavia by launching two weekly flights between Kiev and Zagreb earlier this month. The service has proven successful with healthy loads and will be increased to three weekly from December. Over 11.000 people flew indirectly between the two last year, mainly via Vienna and Warsaw. Zagreb was Kiev’s largest unserved market in Central and Eastern Europe, other than Russia. Ljubljana is now Kiev’s largest unserved market in the region. Windrose itself planned to launch operations to the Slovenian capital this month as well, however, entry restrictions have delayed such plans indefinitely.
The Ukrainian airline will be introducing two weekly services to Belgrade from December 7 and will fill the void left by Air Serbia which has temporarily suspended the route since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. The Serbian carrier has tentatively scheduled its service resumption to Kiev for May 30, 2021, with two weekly rotations, which is down from three weekly during the summer of 2019. Changes at this early stage remain likely. Ukrainian low cost carrier SkyUp, which initially scheduled a new service from Kiev to Belgrade from October but later cancelled its plans, has filed a preliminary schedule indicating it will commence operations to the Serbian capital from January 1, 2021 with two weekly rotations using its Boeing 737-800 aircraft. However, tickets are yet to be put on sale, and it remains unclear whether these flights will materialise.
Windrose will also spread its wings to Skopje, linking the city with a nonstop scheduled service to Ukraine for the first time from December 6. A week earlier, the carrier will inaugurate flights to Podgorica. Montenegro Airlines also plans to introduce a new one weekly service to the Ukrainian capital this winter season, the head of operator Airports of Montenegro, Danilo Orlandić, said recently. He did not indicate when exactly the flights will be launched. Montenegro Airlines is yet to schedule the service, however, last month the company said it was working on introducing flights to the Ukrainian capital.
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