Ljubljana related
Ryanair in Talks for Return to Ljubljana in 2023
STA, 18 July 2022 - The Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair has conducted talks with the Infrastructure and Economy Ministries about setting up flights from and to Ljubljana Airport, according to the Erar web portal. Slovenia is currently the only EU country without flights operated by Ryanair.
Currently working with over 250 airports, Ryanair is now aiming to add Ljubljana to its portfolio in 2023. The carrier briefly maintained flights between London Stansted and Maribor in 2007 and 2008, before terminating the cooperation.
After successfully setting up their Zagreb base in 2021, the budget airline now hopes to set up flights to and from Ljubljana Airport because of its proximity to the capital and Bled as a coveted travel destination.
Slovenia urgently needs a greater airline connectivity, said Matevž Frangež, a state secretary at the Economy Ministry, while representatives of the Infrastructure Ministry added they plan to appoint a new concessionaire to manage Maribor Airport.
Ryanair representatives expressed concerns over high costs per passenger at the Fraport-operated Ljubljana Airport, while Economy Ministry representatives explained to Ryanair the subsidy system, and that they have just finalised an open call for carriers in which Ryanair has not taken part.
State subsidies for carriers will amount to EUR 2 million this year, while last year the amount was EUR 5 million.
Ryanair and the two ministries agreed to draw up a list of destinations that are most strategically important and attractive, and set up a follow-up meeting for August to discuss their cooperation in detail.
According to the Sierra5.net air traffic web portal, the third international airport in Slovenia, located in Portorož, would not be suitable for Ryanair flights, as the landing strip is too short.
The web portal added that only the existing carriers operating to and from Ljubljana Airport could apply for Economy Ministry's subsidies for regular airlines, while the subsidies were not applicable to new carriers.
Maribor Airport would also be suitable for low-cost carriers due to good infrastructure solutions that would facilitate a quick and safe handling of aircraft as well as passengers, while staff shortage might present a problem, Sierra5.net concludes.
STA, 31 May 2022 - Starting on Tuesday, the French carrier Air France will operate two daily flights to Ljubljana airport from Charles de Gaulle airport (Paris) during the summer months.
The carrier will fly to Paris from Ljubljana in the morning and in the afternoon. Passengers will be able to take a return flight to Ljubljana in the afternoon and in the evening, said an Air France spokesperson.
"The additional flight will bring greater connectivity to other Air France's destinations and the time slots are ideal for planning a weekend getaway," Air France-KLM's regional sales manager Ildiko McPartlin-Kiss was quoted in a press release, adding this would bring more foreign tourists to Slovenia.
Babett Stapel, managing director of Fraport Slovenia, is also pleased with the development of the Ljubljana-Paris flight connections. "We are very pleased we have managed to upgrade the long-standing partnership with Air France with a stronger presence on the market, and air traffic is even greater than in the pre-pandemic era," she said.
According to the carrier, they will offer flights to 200 destinations from Charles de Gaulle airport this summer, increasing the number of flights to 90% compared to their 2019 passenger traffic, while also adding some new destinations to their flight itinerary.
Ljubljana Airport is currently served by twelve other airlines, and the summer schedule is expected to include the launch of Israir flights to Tel Aviv and Air Montenegro flights to Tivat.
STA, 14 April 2022 - The low-cost carrier Transavia France, a member of Air France KLM group, launched twice-weekly flights between Paris Orly and Ljubljana on Thursday, joining Air France, which operates daily flights between Ljubljana and Charles de Gaulle.
Transavia France will fly Tuesdays and Thursdays with a Boeing 737-800. The first flight was almost fully booked.
Janez Krašnja, head of airline management, said the airport was glad to have two airlines operating flights to Paris.
"We sincerely hope that the epidemiological situation will make it possible to make this route a permanent feature," he said.
The arrival of Transavia France increases the number of airlines operating flights to Ljubljana to 15.
Krašnja said the number of tourists going through the Jože Pučnik Ljubljana Airport was increasing.
While flights to Moscow, St. Petersburg and Kyiv have been cancelled due to war, Turkish Airlines will increase the frequency to ten flights a week and FlyDubai plans to introduce daily flights to Dubai in the summer.
Last year the airport handled 420,000 passengers. This year the figure is planned to at least double absent new shake-ups due to Covid-19 or other crises.
STA, 25 February 2022 - Direct flight routes between Ljubljana and Brussels will be renewed from next week as Brussels Airlines is returning to Ljubljana Airport on Monday following a suspension of flights in January. Low-budget airline Wizz Air will relaunch Ljubljana-Brussels flights a month later, on 27 March, reads an announcement on the airport's website.
In addition to Monday, Brussels Airlines will also operate flights from Ljubljana Airport on Friday and Sunday next week.
Currently, Slovenia-bound international flights are operated by eleven airlines that cover twelve destinations, the airport's operator Fraport Slovenija said.
Aeroflot flies to Moscow four times a week, Air France to Paris five times a week, Air Montenegro to Podgorica twice a week, Air Serbia to Belgrade six times a week and to Niš twice a week, EasyJet to London Gatwick four times a week, Flydubai to Dubai four times a week, LOT Polish Airlines to Warsaw four times a week, Lufthansa to Frankfurt 13 times a week, Swiss International Airlines to Zurich four times a week, Transavia to Amsterdam twice a week, and Turkish Airlines to Istanbul daily.
According to Fraport Slovenija, air traffic is still largely dependent on border crossing restrictions and other measures in individual countries, as well as on air travel demand. Despite the slow easing of restrictions on global travel, the situation at Ljubljana Airport is improving, the operator said.
The summer season is expected to see a return of a number of airlines to Ljubljana Airport that have suspended their services due to Covid-19, including new flights by Transavia France, Finnair, Lufthansa, British Airways, Wizz Air and Israir.
STA, 3 February 2022 - Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair, which opened a base at Zagreb airport last year and also flies to Trieste, has no plans to fly to and from Ljubljana in the near future, the EX-YU Aviation web portal reported on Thursday. The company says that the two airports cover Slovenia well enough, and also sees high costs as a problem.
The EX-YU Aviation portal stated that Fraport Slovenia, the company that operates the Ljubljana Airport, expressed willingness to resume talks with Ryanair on flights to and from Ljubljana towards the end of 2021, confirming that talks had already taken place in the past.
Ryanair has considered introducing flights to Ljubljana on several occasions over the past decade, and the budget airline also briefly maintained flights between London Stansted and Maribor in 2007 and 2008.
However, Ryanair said in a statement to EX-YU Aviation on Thursday that Ljubljana is served well enough by their base in Zagreb and is also in close proximity to Trieste Airport, from which the company maintains flights to a number of destinations.
"There are currently few chances for Ljubljana to be included in our network", Ryanair concluded. The carrier also accused Fraport of "high and uncompetitive fees", which are expected to lead to the closure of Ryanair's base at Frankfurt Airport by the end of March.
After the Covid crisis hit Ljubljana Airport hard, its operator Fraport Slovenia is now working to find new partners and destinations, also with the support of state funds, to promote the restoration of Slovenia's air connectivity.
After a severe shock due to the epidemic, the airport slightly recovered last year and counted 430,943 passengers, almost 50% more than in 2020, but still remains a far cry from just over 1.7 million passengers recorded in 2019.
In the busiest months of July and August, 17 scheduled airlines linked Ljubljana Airport to the world, while currently 12 scheduled carriers fly from Ljubljana Airport to 13 destinations. Fraport expects the outlook for the summer season to be promising as well.
STA, 17 January 2022 - After suspending flights from Ljubljana to Belgium's Charleroi over the winter, low-cost carrier Wizz Air will also suspend flights to London's Luton airport as of 4 February. The connection will be restored at the start of the summer season, at the end of March, the Ex-Yu Aviation portal reports.
Wizz Air restored the connection between Ljubljana and Luton in mid-December 2021 after a good year and a half of suspension due to Covid-19.
But now, after just over a month and a half the flights are being suspended again.
Ljubljana remains connected to London by easyJet, which flies to Gatwick, but only once a week.
Before the Covid-19 epidemic, flights to London were among the busiest and Ljubljana was connected to all four of London's airports - Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton and Stansted.
STA, 4 January 2022 - The Slovenian capital will have no flight connection to Brussels between 10 January and 28 February as Brussels Airlines is suspending flights on this route at the end of Slovenia's six-month EU presidency. Wizz Air will also suspend the Ljubljana-Brussels connection between 7 January and 11 March, according to web portal Exyuaviation.
Brussels Airlines, which returned to Ljubljana airport just before the start of Slovenia's presidency of the Council of the EU, currently flies to Brussels four times a week.
The low-budget airline Wizz Air meanwhile offers flights to Charleroi airport once a week.
Ljubljana airport, managed by Fraport Slovenija, offers flights to 15 destinations by 13 airlines.
Apart from Brussels Airlines and Wizz Air, which flies to London's Luton three times a week, Aeroflot flies to Moscow five times a week, Air France offers nine flights to Paris, Air Montenegro takes passengers to Podgorica twice a week, and Air Serbia flies to Belgrade nine times a week and to Niš two times a week.
Easyjet has three flights a week to London's Gatwick, Flydubai flies to Dubai three times a week, LOT Polish Airlines connects Ljubljana and Warsaw with six flights a week, Lufthansa has 13 flights to Frankurt, Swiss International Airlines four to Zurich, Transavia four to Amsterdam and Turkish Airlines five to Istanbul.
In the summer season, several connections that have been suspended due to Covid are to be restored, including Transavia France's flights to Paris's Orly, Finnair's to Helsinki, Lufthansa's to Munich, British Airways' to London Heathrow, Easyjet's to London Luton, Iberia's to Madrid, Windrose's to Kiev and Israir's to Tel Aviv.
STA, 13 December 2021 - Low-budget airline Wizz Air has relaunched a direct air route between Ljubljana Airport and London Luton Airport after more than a year and a half of suspension due Covid-19. The carrier will operate three flights per week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays between the two destinations.
Following the latest air route relaunch, the winter season at Slovenia's main airport includes 13 scheduled airlines providing connections with 14 destinations, said Fraport Slovenija, the airport's operator.
Passengers looking for a link with the United Kingdom can currently pick between Wizz Air and EasyJet services. The latter offers flights to London Gatwick four times a week. Wizz Air also provides routes between Ljubljana and Charleroi Airport in Belgium, two times a week.
"Even though border crossings are still restricted by numerous measures to contain the Covid-19 epidemic, demand for travel in general is increasing," said Fraport Slovenija.
In November, Ljubljana Airport saw 45,660 passengers, a 95% increase on the same month last year, when air travel was severely restricted, and a 46% decrease on November 2019.
"Final coordination is underway to prepare the next summer season flight schedule. Flight forecasts for the coming season are encouraging - the summer season should bring new features and resume some routes at Ljubljana Airport that were suspended due to the epidemic," the operator said.
Winter season flights are expected to be joined by Transavia France, linking Ljubljana and Paris Orly Airport, Finnair, operating flights to Helsinki, Lufthansa (Munich), British Airways (London Heathrow), Easyjet (London Luton), Iberia (Madrid) and Israir (Tel Aviv).
STA, 7 December 2021 - Slovenia saw the biggest drop in air passenger transport in the EU in the 2020 pandemic year, fresh Eurostat data show. While the number of total passengers in the EU dropped by 73% to 277 million, in Slovenia it plummeted by 83% year-on-year.
Slovenia is followed by Slovakia and Croatia, where 82% fewer air passengers were recorded.
The busiest airport was Charles De Gaulle in Paris, which recorded 22 million passengers, while Slovenia's Jože Pučnik Airport Ljubljana ranked 147th with 288,000 passengers, of whom 159,000 travelled within the EU and 129,000 to countries outside the EU.
In the past year, the country's main airport saw 4,000 passenger aircraft movements, which is down 81% from 2019.
The most important connection was that with Frankfurt, followed by Istanbul, Paris's Charles De Gaulle, the Belgrade airport and London's Stansted.
The smallest drop in passengers in the EU was recorded by the Sofia airport, where the volume of passenger transport was down by 60%.
STA, 5 December - Fraport Slovenija's new managing director Babett Stapel, who took over at the helm of the company operating Ljubljana's international airport in October, is optimistic about the airline industry and airport's future. She sees the industry's recovery, providing connectivity, and increasing staff numbers as key challenges post-pandemic.
The pandemic has hit the Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport quite hard. It had 339,000 passengers in the first ten months, up from 282,000 in the same period 2020. The figure is expected to rise to 407,000 by the end of the year, which is 40% more than in 2020 but still 75% below 2019.
Growth has been partly fuelled by Slovenia's EU presidency, with Stapel telling the STA in an interview it was a nice surprise that despite the pandemic, a number of events were held in-person. The presidency has thus brought some 20,000 passengers.
The airport plans some 900,000 passengers in 2022, which is still 44% fewer than the 1.6 million it set itself as the basis, so Stapel expects full recovery only in 2025.
Although the new reality makes forecasts very hard to make, she remains optimistic for 2022, wishing the EU would unify measures and rules as soon as possible to make travel easier, which would benefit the entire air travel industry.
Cargo transport at Ljubljana airport has meanwhile increased by 12% this year compared to 2019 and by 21% compared to 2020. Since growth is expected to continue at one-dight rates until 2030, Fraport Slovenija is planning new investments in cargo infrastructure.
Stapel says that apart from the EUR 23 million invested in the new passenger terminal, which opened on 1 July, the company has invested another EUR 39.5 million in the infrastructure, equipment and IT since it started managing the airport in 2015.
She says it was strict cost cutting and strong ties with business partners to have enabled Fraport Slovenija to relatively successfully weather the coronacrisis.
Also thanks to EUR 5 million in state aid in compensation for the airport's closure for passenger transport in 2020, the company expects a positive EBITDA, while the bottom line will still be negative this year.
Further recovery of passenger air transport and ensuing connectivity is what she sees as the company's a key challenge for the future. She says close cooperation between the airport, air carriers, tourist industry and the state is of utmost importance.
In this respect, she expects the state subsidy scheme for airlines to ensure Slovenia's connectivity to be extended to this winter season and the next summer season.
As passenger numbers are expected to further grow, Fraport is also planning new hirings after having to lay off some staff last year. Around a fifth of those laid off will be hired, Stapel says, while new staff will also be sought, which she expects to be quite hard given the current situation in the labour market.
