Can Ryanair solve Slovenia’s poor aviation connectivity?

The fact that Ljubljana's Fraport-operated Brnik Airport is still lagging significantly behind its pre-pandemic passenger numbers, and indeed prior to when Adria Airways ceased operations late in 2019, is not because Slovenia is the only country within the European Union(EU) to not receive flights from Low Cost Carrier(LCC) Ryanair, but brokering a deal with the…

Slovenia: The lack of a flag carrier does not justify poor connectivity

It is not a big surprise that Slovenia will not during its incumbent administration seek to (re)establish a new national flag carrier. Perhaps more surprising is that a country of two million people previously had such an entity but any incredulity does a serious disservice to the much missed Adria Airways. I first used Adria…

Air Adriatic falls at the first hurdle in its quest to replace Adria Airways

Should a country the size of Slovenia expect to have a national airline? A nation of just over two million citizens is not an ideal market for an established flag carrier or one that is considering starting up, and had the former Yugoslav republic not previously been serviced by the now defunct Adria Airways, I…

Maribor Airport the real victim of VLM Airlines’ demise

To describe VLM Airlines as Maribor Airport's 'anchor tenant' somewhat stretches a definition more associated with large retail concerns, situated to attract custom to smaller, adjacent businesses. Despite offering a modern, fit for purpose terminal, VLM were though all Maribor's Edvard Rusjan Airport had, aside from sporadic charter flights for visiting soccer teams. Having recently…

Should its new-found stability encourage Adria Airways to stick or twist?

Adria Airways' tacit core strategy of concentrating on its 'bread and butter' routes from Ljubljana's Brnik Airport has been further underlined by an increased commitment by the Slovenian flag carrier to extend services into its fellow former-Yugoslav republics. Despite there always being a wide disparity between the relatively prosperous northern Yugoslavia and the comparatively impoverished…

Adria Airways: sale of Slovenian flag carrier agreed in principal

GOING...GOING...FINALLY GONEThe seemingly interminable denationalisation of the troubled Slovenian flag carrier has been concluded, at the second time of asking, although the wishes of the Slovenian government to divest themselves of Adria Airways have been bubbling under the surface since its initial failed attempt in 2012.As widely reported in the Slovenian media, on the Ex-Yugoslav…

Adria Airways to sell for €1 – but there’s a catch…

The imminent sale of Slovenian flag carrier Adria Airways has taken a decisive step towards its denouement, with the country's incumbent administration agreeing to facilitate the airline's disposal with a rumoured €2-4 million cash injection that could potentially be used to service the Brnik-based operator's debts, one of the reported conditions demanded by interested parties…

Air Cairo to operate summer Hurghada-Ljubljana charter flights

It is unclear if the recent spate of tourist stabbings in the Egyptian resort of Hurghada will affect Air Cairo's plans to link up the Red Sea resort with Ljubljana's Brnik airport, its schedule to operate summer charter flights for three months is provisionally slated to begin from the end of May 2016.The service which…

Ljubljana Airport hopeful of one, perhaps two, new terminal buildings

An airport terminal to match the ambition and heavy investment from owners Fraport could soon become a reality at Ljubljana's Brnik Aerodrome, following news that work to bring the dated facility into the 21st century is due to commence early in 2016, with completion tentatively slated for 2018.Check in and security have for some years…

Adria Airways to operate seasonal Klagenfurt-Cephalonia service

In a ongoing programme of expansion outside of Slovenia's borders, flag carrier Adria Airways have announced its intention to operate services from Klagenfurt Airport, a short journey across the frontier it shares with Austria and based at the heart of its Carinthia province.Having taken the unusual step of stepping into the breach vacated by the…

Adria Airways set to welcome additional CRJ700-class jet to its fleet

A twelve year old Bombardier CRJ700-class aircraft formerly operated by Lufthansa is over the next few weeks due to enter service with Slovenian flag carrier Adria Airways. Joining a similar jet in Adria's fleet acquired in March that predominantly operates out of their hub in the Polish city of Lodz, the plane is currently in…

Adria Airways loses Istanbul route but gains Brnik service to Cologne

Adria Airways have of late scored some notable successes over rival airlines, especially the decision of Swiss to discontinue their only recently reinstated Ljubljana to Zurich route, in the face of fierce competition from the Slovenian flag carrier. Elsewhere, Adria secured its fifth route out of Tirana's Mother Teresa Airport that saw the shelving of…

Adria Airways to take over Lufthansa’s Tirana-Munich route

Adria Airways' two-pronged strategy for their immediate future has seen the Slovenian flag-carrier move away from a desire to expand its route network, opting to shelve plans to broaden its continental reach and instead consolidate existing services, concentrating on maximising passenger load factors.Strengthening of key routes will form the cornerstone of Adria's notional blueprint, a…

Maribor Airport set to welcome seasonal flights from Podgorica

Life has been much quieter at Maribor Airport since the initial flurry of excitement surrounding Adria Airways' reintroduction of services after a hiatus of fifteen years gave way to the almost inevitable shelving of the flag carrier's route into London Southend, with no guarantees of a 2016 reinstatement. Berlin-based aviators Windrose Airlines plan to operator several…

Adria Airways to clip the wings of its own ambition

Adria Airways have announced plans to scale back their ambitious plans for the coming year, deciding instead to consolidate its current schedule and confirmed routes for 2016.Whilst much of what Adria's management implement is at the mercy of the flag-carrier's new owners, there is, as has perpetually been the case, a strategic position being adopted…

Adria Airways Tehnika: employees unhappy at perceived unequal treatment during bidding process

The acquisition of Adria Airways Tehnika(AAT) by Warsaw-based aircraft maintenance specialists Linetech Holding(LH) has been roundly condemned by AAT's workforce, who, having formed a standalone company predicated on forcing through an employee buyout are dismayed that they weren't given ample opportunity to raise their initial bid, in response to what ultimately proved to be the…

Adria Airways: strike action averted or just a stay of execution?

Industrial action threatened by Adria Airways' pilots and designed to force the hand of the airline's management has been averted at the eleventh hour, with an as of yet unreported agreement thrashed out between both parties through the pilots' trade union representatives. Consternation this year within Adria's rank and file has been widely reported and whilst…

Adria Airways: strike action from its pilots is the last thing the airline needs

News of strike action called by Adria Airways' pilots should come as no surprise to seasoned observers, the majority of whom over the last few years have become accustomed to Slovenia's flag carrier seemingly lurching from one crisis to the next.Whilst industrial action in the aviation industry is far from unusual and doesn't always indicate…

Adria Airways to operate the former Estonian Air’s flight schedule

An unlikely tie up between Slovenian flag carrier Adria Airways and the Estonian government sees a somewhat ironic scenario of the ailing Brnik-based airline honouring many of the services previously operated by the recently defunct Estonian Air. Having received a substantial government bail out in 2009 that has since been declared by the European Commission…

Adria Airways: Italian charters to broaden the airline’s roster of destinations

Slovenia's enduring appeal with Italian tourists has driven demand for a raft of new Adria Airways-operated charter services, linking Bari, Naples and Palermo with Ljubljana's Brnik hub. The roster of flights is slated to continue until the end of 2015 with the promise of additional services earmarked for next year during lucrative bank holiday periods.Operated…