Aegean looks to play greater role in former Yugoslavia
Greece’s Aegean Airlines has markets in the former Yugoslavia firmly on its radar with the carrier recently submitting a bid to launch new flights from Skopje and/or Ohrid in return for financial support. Furthermore, the carrier will inaugurate services from Athens to Ljubljana and Split this summer and is also expected to introduce seasonal operations to Banja Luka. Last year, Aegean launch seasonal flights from Thessaloniki to Dubrovnik, which will be restored this year, as well as scheduled services from Rhodes and Heraklion to Belgrade.
Commenting on its operations, Aegean Airlines said, "The former Yugoslav region is an important market for Aegean Airlines. Demand for these routes remain strong as passengers are able to travel to Athens and beyond. Our performance is satisfactory on these markets, as is the cooperation we have with partner airlines in the region. Almost all flights from the former Yugoslav republics to Athens offer very good point to point coverage, as well as access to Greek domestic destinations, connections to Cyprus and destinations in the Middle East and Southern Italy, which have proved popular with passengers from the Balkan region”.
The Greek carrier recently said it was looking to strengthen its role in Southeaster Europe. The airline purchased a 51% stake in Romania’s Animawings in 2021 and late last year said it was eyeing other acquisitions in the region. Aegean Airlines recently noted it was continuing to look into opportunities of aligning itself closer with Croatia Airlines, which could potentially lead to a strategic partnership between the two Star Alliance members. Just prior to the outbreak of Covid-19, Aegean confirmed it had submitted a non-binding bid for the acquisition of Croatia’s national carrier. The next phase was to include direct talks between the Greek airline and the Croatian government. However, the process was halted in March 2020 as the global health emergency hit the aviation and tourism sectors.
This week, the Macedonian government is evaluating the three bids it received for the launch of new routes from the country, one of which is from Aegean. In order to be eligible for the financial assistance, the Greek carrier must introduce year-round flights from Skopje to at least one new destination that has been unserved from the city since last summer at the earliest, or new year-round flights from Ohrid, which can not be from the Greek capital. The airline currently maintains two weekly rotations between Athens and Skopje with the ATR72-600 turboprop, operated by its subsidiary Olympic Air.
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