The international airports in Dubrovnik, Sarajevo and Zagreb will be the fastest growing airports in the former Yugoslavia during the third quarter, i.e. the summer season from July to October, thus adding the largest planned capacity in the same period last year.
As the specialized portal ex-Yu Aviation writes, Sarajevo International Airport should continue to mark record results in the number of passengers, with an additional 125,359 seats during the third quarter of 2024 and with a total projected capacity of 438,761 seats.
Growth was driven by the introduction of new flights by a number of airlines, led by Ryanair with an addition of 62,844 seats, followed by Pegasus Airlines, Air Arabia and Jazeera Airways.
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As for Zagreb Airport, an additional 119,450 seats are expected during the third quarter, and Ryanair itself increased its capacity by 96,698 seats and is one of the main growth catalysts. However, a number of other airlines also increased operations, including Croatia Airlines, Lufthansa and Iberia, while South Korea’s T’Way Air will also contribute, adding 13,533 seats to the market during the quarter.
Dubrovnik Airport will lead the way with an additional 171,203 seats. The strong growth comes thanks to the opening of Ryanair’s base in the city this summer, with Dubrovnik Airport boasting a total of 891,385 seats over the three-month period. Only Ryanair will have 252,688 seats or about 28% of the total capacity, while last year its share was only 4.6%. Most of the other carriers flying to Dubrovnik will also increase their capacity during the third quarter, with some of the biggest increases coming from Volotea, easyJet and Iberia.
On the other hand, not all airports in the region expect growth compared to the third quarter of last year.
Tuzla Airport will have the most consequences, which will lose 72,545 seats, or about 78% of the total capacity. The result comes as a result of the closure of Wizz Air’s base in the city last September. Niš will follow, affected by Wizz Air’s capacity reduction due to engine problems, losing 23,326 seats in the third quarter of 2023. Similarly, Ohrid will have 15,516 fewer seats and Banja Luka 15,131 for the same reason.
