Montenegro Airlines’ figures tumble, Belgrade busiest route
Montenegro Airlines has seen its passenger numbers decline 77.2% during the first three quarters of the year as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, with Belgrade and Paris its busiest routes. The airline welcomed 123.447 travellers on board its aircraft during the January - September period, while its average cabin load factor fell from 70% in 2019 to 54% so far this year. Due to declining demand and evolving travel restrictions, figures in October took an even greater hit, with the average cabin occupancy rate on its flights amounting to just 43%. “We are unhappy with the results. However, we have responsibly carried out our mission to maintain the country’s connectivity with the world”, the company said.
Belgrade continues to be the carrier’s busiest route, despite not operating for a longer period of time than most of its other destinations. “Belgrade accounted for 57% of all of our passenger traffic on scheduled flights, despite the route’s suspension lasting the longest. This shows just how important this destination is for the company’s operations”, Montenegro Airlines said. Belgrade was followed by Paris, Ljubljana, Zurich and Frankfurt. The greatest average occupancy per flight was recorded to Belgrade at 62%, followed by Paris, Frankfurt and Ljubljana with Zurich fairing the worst. “There is a lot of interest for flights to Moscow and St Petersburg which have been inoperative since the onset of the pandemic. The Russian market was the second busiest for us over the past decade”, the airline said. There is currently no indication when Russia may allow for the resumption of flights between the two countries, however Montenegro Airlines is hopeful services could resume sooner rather than later.
Q1 - Q3 performance by route
| Airport | PAX |
|---|---|
| Belgrade | 64.125 |
| Paris | 8.419 |
| Ljubljana | 8.170 |
| Zurich | 7.572 |
| Frankfurt | 7.485 |
The Montenegrin carrier noted that travel restrictions are having the greatest impact on its business. The majority of Montenegrin citizens are unable to enter the European Union. Furthermore, most European countries have issued warnings against all but essential travel to Montenegro, which has also reduced demand. “In addition to Moscow and St Petersburg, we have been unable to restore flights to Leipzig and Munich, as well as launch operations to Lisbon as almost 100% of bookings on these flights have been cancelled. These were mostly foreign tourists. Due to travel restrictions, we were also unable to operate a number of planned charters to Tel Aviv and Bratislava, as well as to cities in Germany and the Czech Republic. In addition, our regular year-round weekend charters to southern Italy have also been temporarily suspended”, the company said.
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