Emirates CEO holds talks with Serbian PM
The Founder and CEO of Emirates, Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, and other prominent figures and politicians from the United Arab Emirates and the Emirate of Dubai, have held a meeting with the Serbian Prime Minister, Ana Brnabić, in Dubai, where an agreement was signed for sharing expertise in a wide variety of areas, including tourism. The Emirati carrier has had Belgrade under review as a potential destination on several occasions over the past decade. It currently codeshares on Flydubai’s ten weekly service between the two cities, which will increase to fourteen weekly next month. In 2021, the Dubai - Belgrade route saw its best results on record, with passenger numbers growing over 31% on the pre-pandemic 2019.
Belgrade has performed extremely well for Flydubai during the Covid pandemic, with healthy two-way point to point traffic, and less indirect competition. However, Emirates itself is not convinced it would be able to fill its first and business class cabins on the Boeing 777 aircraft on flights to the Serbian capital. Several years ago, Emirates sent an introductory request to Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport requiring basic information for the potential introduction of services. However, according to media reports, no response was sent to the airline for some time, which occurred at the height of Etihad Airways’ involvement in Air Serbia. Over the last year, the Emirati carrier is believed to have launched another feasibility study into potential operations to Belgrade.
Cargo is among one of the main drivers for Emirates’ interest in serving Belgrade. Serbia and the United Arab Emirates have begun the export and import of perishables which must be carried under special requirements which Emirates can meet, that are difficult to fulfill on Boeing 737 aircraft, currently serving the two cities. Apples are the main Serbian export to the UAE, along with honey products, hard cheeses, wine, pasta, corn and animal feed. The UAE has recently proposed to become a logistic hub for the export of Serbian products to Bahrain, Oman and Saudi Arabia. Emirates sees the prospect of cargo, along with solid year-round demand as a suitable launching pad for potential flights, although premium loads remain a deterrent.
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