Air Serbia

Not to be confused with Air Srpska.
Air Serbia
IATA ICAO Callsign
JU ASL AIR SERBIA
Founded 29 February 1992 (1992-02-29)
Belgrade, Serbia
First founded on 17 June 1927
(as Aeroput)
Commenced operations 26 October 2013 (2013-10-26)
(as Air Serbia)
Hubs Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport
Frequent-flyer program Etihad Guest[1]
Subsidiaries
Fleet size 20
Destinations 40[6]
Parent company Government of Serbia (51%)[7]
Headquarters Belgrade, Serbia
Key people
  • Dane Kondić (CEO)[8]
  • Branislav Malović
    (Executive director)
  • Davor Mišeljić
    (Executive director)
Revenue Increase €262 million (2014)[7]
Net income Increase €3.9 million (2015)[9]
Total assets Increase €304.97 million (2013)[10]
Total equity Steady €0 (2013)[10]
Employees 1,527 (2013)[10]
Website airserbia.com

Air Serbia (stylized as AirSERBIA; Serbian: Ер Србија / Er Srbija) is the flag carrier and largest airline of Serbia.[11] The airline was formerly known as Jat Airways until it was renamed in 2013. Air Serbia commenced operations under its new name on 26 October 2013.[11][12] The airline has its hub at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport.[8]

History

See also: Aeroput and Jat Airways

Air Serbia draws its heritage, including the airline code JU, from flag carriers of former Yugoslavia: Aeroput was established in Belgrade in 1927, and was replaced by Jugoslovenski Aerotransport (JAT) in 1948 as the national airline of the Socialist Yugoslavia. After the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1990s, JAT became a flag carrier of Serbia and Montenegro (FR Yugoslavia) and was renamed Jat Airways in 2003. However, the aging fleet and lack of investments caused the company to record financial losses year after year, and several Serbian governments were looking after a strategic partner for the company.[13]

On 1 August 2013, Jat Airways and Etihad Airways entered into an agreement of strategic partnership. Under the agreement, Etihad acquired a 49% stake in Jat Airways and management rights for a period of five years.[14] The Republic of Serbia would retain the remaining 51% and hold five of nine monitoring committee seats in the company.[15] Jat Airways was reorganized and renamed Air Serbia in October 2013 and launched its inaugural flight under its new name on 26 October 2013, from Belgrade to Abu Dhabi.[11]

Air Serbia's logo is a stylized double-headed eagle inspired by the Serbian coat-of-arms.[16] The airline's branding was based on work undertaken by Tamara Maksimović, a 25-year-old graphic designer from Novi Sad.[17]

Serbian tennis player Novak Đoković gave his name to the first Airbus A319, and will be part of the series titled Living legends of Serbia which will appear on the new fleet of the airline.[18] Serbian professional basketball player Vlade Divac gave his name to the first Airbus A320.[19]

Destinations

Air Serbia's first Airbus A319-100 landing at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport

The first flight under the new Air Serbia brand operated for promotional purposes on 26 October 2013 initiating the service to Abu Dhabi,[20] with the first revenue flight taking place the following day from Abu Dhabi to Belgrade. Since the launch Air Serbia has introduced services to Banja Luka and Prague on 1 December 2013,[20] Ljubljana and Bucharest on 10 December 2013,[20] Budapest, Sofia and Varna on 30 March 2014 with Warsaw and Beirut on 29 May 2014 and 1 June 2014 respectively.[21] Plans for Cairo and Kiev have been postponed until further notice. On 5 June 2014 the airline announced the opening of a line to Tirana in the near future. Following an agreement with Turkish authorities reached in Ankara on 16 June 2014, the airline will resume its flights from Istanbul Atatürk Airport on the European side of the city, replacing those from Sabiha Gökçen which it had been required to switch to.[22]

Codeshare agreements

Air Serbia has codeshare agreements with the following airlines, which are the actual operators on the routes specified:[23]

Darwin Airline cooperation

From 26 June 2014 till 25 September 2014,[33] Air Serbia entered into a cooperation with Darwin Airline from Switzerland (operating under the brand Etihad Regional following their recent acquisition by Etihad Airways) and leased from them a Saab 2000 aircraft and cabin crew[34] which were used on its route to Banja Luka.[35]

Long-haul plans

On 22 October 2013, Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić said that the possibility of Air Serbia transatlantic flights was discussed, claiming the first flight could be in three years time or earlier, to two destinations in North America, referring to Toronto and Chicago, or possibly New York City,[36] which all would be operated with an Airbus A330-200.[37][38][39] On 16 May 2014 Serbia and China signed a new ASA opening the way for future long-haul flights between the two countries.[40]

On November 9, 2015, CEO Dane Kondić and the Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić confirmed that Air Serbia will begin operating weekly flights to New York City in the summer of 2016. They will be operating with an Airbus A330-200, which will be likely leased from another Etihad partner. The Serbian Government is awaiting a decision on its application for these flights to be approved.[41][42]

Turkish Airlines conflict

Air Serbia switched operations from Istanbul Atatürk Airport to Sabiha Gökçen Airport on 27 October 2013, after being given unfavourable slot timings at Atatürk Airport.[43] The move was seen as protectionism by the Turkish government of their national carrier Turkish Airlines.[44] On 27 March 2014 the Turkish carriers flying to Belgrade, including Turkish Airlines, were issued only two months temporary permit by the Serbian Civil Aviation Directorate, thus being at risk of having their rights revoked right in the middle of the summer season unless a compromise was found.[45] During the month of June the dispute intensified with highest level diplomatic representatives from both countries being involved and Turkish Airlines being under threat to be forced to reduce their flights to Belgrade from seventeen to four weekly. Finally, following a series of meetings in Belgrade and Ankara, on June 16 an agreement has been reached that will see Air Serbia switching its operations from Sabiha Gokcen back to Atatürk Airport while Turkish will have to limit its number of flights from seventeen to fourteen weekly thus ending the row. Soon after Air Serbia officially announced the resumption of operations to Atatürk airport starting August the 1st 2014.[46]

Fleet

An Air Serbia Airbus A319-100 at Frankfurt Airport in 2013.
An Air Serbia Airbus A320-200 at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport in 2014.
An Air Serbia ATR 72-500 at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport in 2015.
An Aviolet Boeing 737-300 at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport in 2014.

As of May 2015, the Air Serbia fleet comprises the following aircraft:[47]

Air Serbia fleet
Aircraft In Service Orders Passengers Notes
J Y Total
Airbus A319-100 8 — 8 120 128
Airbus A320-200 2 — 8 147 155
Airbus A320neo — 10[48] – – TBA To be delivered between 2018 and 2020.[49]
Airbus A330-200 — 1 18 238 256[50] To be leased from Jet Airways, arriving in May 2016.[51][52][53]
ATR 72-200 3 — 0 66 66
ATR 72-500 3 — 0 66 66
Boeing 737-300 4 — 0 144 144 Operated for charter brand Aviolet[5]
Total 20 11

Subsidiaries

Air Serbia Ground Services

Renamed from SU-Port and shortened as ASGS, Air Serbia Ground Services was the first officially certified supplier of ground handling services in the Republic of Serbia, which has obtained a ground handling certificate issued by the Civil Aviation Directorate. ASGS has been certified to provide ground handling operations which include handling of passengers, baggage, aircraft, cargo and mail. Since its foundation in 2002 and up to the present day, Air Serbia Ground Services annually provided ground handling services to more than 1 million passengers, on 8500 flights, on behalf of the national air carrier – Air Serbia and other companies.[54]

Air Serbia Technical

On 28 May 2014 Air Serbia announced the creation of its technical division, providing services of line-maintenance at Belgrade Airport to Air Serbia and its partner airlines.[55]

Aviolet

In May 2014 Air Serbia launched a new charter brand called Aviolet,[56] (Serbian Cyrillic: Авиолет) which uses Air Serbia's Boeing 737-300 fleet[57] under Air Serbia's JU code with a four digit flight number. Their first service operated on 24 May 2014 to Antalya.[5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Air Serbia Etihad Guest". Archived from the original on 10 April 2014. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  2. ↑ "Air Serbia establishes line maintenance facility in Belgrade". airserbia.com. Archived from the original on 29 May 2014. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  3. ↑ "AirSERBIA Ground Services". Archived from the original on 24 May 2014. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  4. ↑ Aviolet - official site www.aviokarta.net (English) (Serbian)
  5. 1 2 3 "Aviolet - novi brend Air Serbije za čarter letove". Aviokarta.net (in Serbian). 23 May 2014.
  6. ↑ "Our story". Air Serbia. Retrieved 15 December 2015.. 39 destinations listed as of December 2015, with Belgrade as 40th.
  7. 1 2 Dron, Alan (3 March 2015). "Air Serbia records first full-year profit in 2014". Air Transport World. Archived 3 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine.
  8. 1 2 "Belgrade Airport, with resurgent Air Serbia, challenges the hub order in Central/Southeast Europe". CAPA Centre for Aviation. 18 March 2015. Archived 21 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine.
  9. ↑ Dron, Alan (5 May 2016). "Air Serbia’s 2015 net profit up 44%". Air Transport World. Archived 6 May 2016 at the Wayback Machine.
  10. 1 2 3 Подаци о обвезнику. apr.gov.rs (in Serbian). Агенција за привредне регистре. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  11. 1 2 3 "Air Serbia: A New Dawn for Serbia as Revitalised National Airline Takes to the Skies". Centre for Aviation. 28 October 2013. Archived from the original on 20 June 2014.
  12. ↑ "Air Serbia: New Route Network Gives Best Ever Choice for Serbian Travellers". Centre for Aviation. 28 October 2013. Archived from the original on 20 June 2014.
  13. ↑ "History". Air Serbia. Retrieved 10 November 2015.}
  14. ↑ "Etihad Airways and Government of Serbia unveil strategic partnership to secure future of Serbian National Airline". Etihad Airways. 1 August 2013. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  15. ↑ "Jat Airways to be renamed to Air Serbia in August". B92. 29 July 2013. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  16. ↑ "Air Serbia - Bruce Drum (airlinersgallery)". Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  17. ↑ "New name and new look revealed for Serbia's National Airline". Etihad Airways. 1 August 2013. Retrieved 27 August 2013.
  18. ↑ Novak Djokovic accepted that Air Serbia’s aircraft bears his name at inserbia.info, 25 October 2013, retrieved 30 December 2013
  19. ↑ MONDO/Tanjug. "Avion Er Srbije nosiće ime Vlade Divac - Mondo Portal". Mondo Portal. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  20. 1 2 3 "Special Offers". Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  21. ↑ "Air Serbia pomera početak letova za Bejrut na jun". Aviokarta.net (in Serbian). Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  22. ↑ "Aviokarta.net - Air Serbia od avgusta na aerodromu Istanbul - Ataturk". Aviokarta.net. 27 June 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  23. ↑ "Our Partners". Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  24. 1 2 3 "Air Serbia continues to expand its network through codeshare partnerships" (Press release). Air Serbia. 14 May 2015. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  25. ↑ L, J (3 November 2015). "airBaltic / Air Serbia Expands Codeshare Partnership from Nov 2015". Airline Route. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  26. ↑ "Сезонски ред летења". Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  27. ↑ "Air Serbia announces codeshare with Air China" (Press release). Air Serbia. 5 May 2015. Archived 12 May 2015 at the Wayback Machine.
  28. ↑ http://www.exyuaviation.com/2016/03/us-flights-air-serbias-primary-focus-in.html
  29. ↑ http://corporate.alitalia.it/static/upload/201/0000/20150915-codeshare-alitalia-air-serbia-ita.pdf
  30. ↑ "Etihad Regional and Air Serbia announce codeshare agreement" (Press release). Air Serbia. 4 August 2014. Archived 12 August 2014 at the Wayback Machine.
  31. ↑ Dron, Alan (12 June 2015). "Air Serbia, LOT announce codeshare". Air Transport World. Archived 13 June 2015 at the Wayback Machine.
  32. ↑ "„България ер” сключи споразумение за „код шеър" с Air Serbia". Archived from the original on 5 November 2014.
  33. ↑ UBM Information Ltd. 2015 (30 June 2014). "Air Serbia Leases ETIHAD Regional Saab 2000 Aircraft for Banja Luka Service June – Sep 2014". Routesonline. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  34. ↑ Air Serbia introduces Saab 2000 aircraft on Belgrade - Banja Luka route at Air Serbia official website, 26-6-2014, retrieved 16-4-2015
  35. ↑ "Aviokarta.net - Air Serbia avionom Etihad Regionala leti za Banja Luku". Aviokarta.net. 26 June 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  36. ↑ "Vučić: Da Er Srbija bude najjača avio-kompanija u regionu" (in Serbian). Tanjug. 25 October 2013. Archived 3 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine.
  37. ↑ Etihad Airways A330 Nikola Tesla airport, Belgrade. YouTube. 14 October 2013. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  38. ↑ Etihadov A330-200 prvi put na Aerodromu “Nikola Tesla”
  39. ↑ Air Serbia likely to lease Airbus A330 for trans-Atlantic flights
  40. ↑ "Serbia and China sign new ASA" (in Serbian). Embassy of Serbia in Beijing. 17 May 2014.
  41. ↑ "Kondić: "Er Srbija" do juna 2016. uvodi letove za Njujork" (in Serbian). Radio Television of Serbia. 9 November 2015.
  42. ↑ Hofmann, Kurt. "Air Serbia reports 3Q operating revenue up 26%". ATW Online. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
  43. ↑ "Aviokarta.net - Air Serbia menja aerodrom u Istanbulu od kraja oktobra". Aviokarta.net. 17 September 2013. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  44. ↑ "EX-YU Aviation News: Air Serbia demands return to Ataturk". Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  45. ↑ "Putovanja - Gde æemo i sa kim leteti ovog leta? - B92 Putovanja". B92. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  46. ↑ "Serbia-Turkey aviation row comes to an end". Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  47. ↑ "Our Fleet". Air Serbia. Archived 12 May 2015 at the Wayback Machine.
  48. ↑ "AIR SERBIA ANNOUNCES TEN AIRBUS A320NEO AIRCRAFT FOR ITS FLEET FROM 2018" (Press release). Air Serbia. 19 November 2013. Archived from the original on 29 June 2014.
  49. ↑ "Dubai 2013: Šta novo donosi Airbus A320 NEO?". Tangosix.rs. 4 December 2013.
  50. ↑ "Air Serbia launches JFK ticket sales". Ex Yu Aviation. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  51. ↑ "Stiže iz Indije A 330 za SAD a uzećemo još jedan" [An A330 arrives from India for USA flights, and we will take another]. B92. 25 November 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
  52. ↑ "Mali: Avion za letove za SAD stiže u maju". Tanjug. 23 January 2016.
  53. ↑ "Air Serbia to use "infrastructure of other airlines" for New York service". Balkans news. 14 December 2015.
  54. ↑ "Air Serbia official website - airserbia.com". Air Serbia official website - airserbia.com. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  55. ↑ "News". Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  56. ↑ Air Serbia’s charter brand takes off
  57. ↑ Aviolet official website, retrieved 8-12-2014

Further reading

External links

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