Another record-breaking month for Sarajevo International Airport, 185.911 passengers used the airport during the last month, representing an increase of 39% when compared to April of 2024. or 53.079 increase in passengers handled. The number of aircraft operations grew by 24%, while cargo increased by 6%. Year to date airport recorded 519.713 passengers, representing an increase of 150.399 passengers or 41%.
The government of Bosnia and Herzegovina has announced that
citizens of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Oman will enjoy visa-free entry during
the upcoming summer season. The Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina approved
this decision, proposed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and confirmed by
Minister Elmedin Dino Konaković. Travelers from these Gulf nations will not
need a visa to visit Bosnia and Herzegovina from June 1. to September 30.2025.
In response
to the visa waiver, Flyadeal Airlines revealed that it will be adding a new
route from Gassim, Saudi Arabia, to Sarajevo, marking its third destination from Saudi Arabia to Bosnia and Herzegovina, following Jeddah and Riyadh. The new flights will start
on June 21.2025. operating twice weekly (on Thursdays and Saturdays) until
August 16.2025. Flyadeal will offer a total of 34 round-trip flights from
Gassim to Sarajevo, providing 6.324 seats. With flights already running from
Jeddah and Riyadh, the airline will operate 244 flights in total from three
Saudi airports, offering 45.384 seats.
Meanwhile,
Salam Air will resume its twice-weekly flights from Muscat, Oman, to Sarajevo.
The service will operate on Wednesdays and Saturdays from July 2.2025. to
August 30.2025. with an Airbus A321neo aircraft. Salam Air is scheduled to
operate 36 flights in both directions, providing 7.632 seats.
Additionally,
Arkia Airlines, following the success of its charter program last year,
will resume regular charter flights from Tel Aviv to Sarajevo. Starting on June 7.2025. flights will operate once weekly on Saturdays until September 27.2025.
During July and August, Arkia will increase frequency to double daily flights
on Saturdays. A total of 52 flights are planned, offering nearly 10.000 seats.
With the addition of new routes for the summer timetable
(April-October), Sarajevo Airport will be served by 27 airlines, providing
access to 41 destinations across 3 continents, with a total of 2.072.817
available seats on 12.380 flights.
In 2024, Bosnia and Herzegovina's four international airports handled a total of 2.476.138 passengers, reflecting a 2.07% increase compared to the previous year. Despite the closure of Wizz Air bases in Sarajevo and Tuzla, the airports were able to offset the loss in passenger traffic, particularly at Sarajevo Airport. This was achieved through the launch of new routes by Ryanair (six new routes), Sun Express Airlines (two new routes), and Scandinavian Airlines (Copenhagen), along with Wizz Air introducing flights to Rome. Additionally, there was an increase in frequencies on existing routes, primarily with airlines from the Gulf region, including Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Dubai, Doha, Jeddah, Kuwait City, and Riyadh.
Mostar Airport introduced new flights by Sky Alps to Rome, Verona, Bari, and Munich, while Air Serbia launched three weekly flights between Belgrade and Mostar.
Tuzla Airport welcomed new services to Istanbul by two airlines, Ajet and Pegasus Airlines, each offering one weekly flight.
Banja Luka Airport introduced Ryanair flights from Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden, with two weekly services.
Bosnia and Herzegovina  |  |
 Sarajevo (SJJ) |  |
 Tuzla (TZL) |  |
 |  |
 Mostar (OMO) | \  |
Bosnia and Herzegovina passenger air traffic history
Source: Zahid Krkić and BHDCA
Next week, Wizz Air will hold talks with Sarajevo Airport about the possibility of reopening a base at the airport. The airline plans to base one Airbus A320 aircraft at the airport, with additional details expected to be announced soon.
In the meantime, Wizz Air is expanding its Abu Dhabi-Sarajevo route. Initially, the airline had scheduled 3 to 5 weekly flights between the two cities. However, due to strong demand, Wizz Air is adding 88 additional round-trip flights, increasing seat capacity by 21.032. From April to October, the airline will operate 332 flights on the route, offering a total of 79.348 seats.
With the expansion of flights from Abu Dhabi, Wizz Air has climbed to the fourth position in terms of seat capacity at Sarajevo Airport, with a total of 150.570 seats across three routes: Abu Dhabi, London-Luton, and Rome.
Eurowings will also introduce seasonal summer flights from Düsseldorf and Stuttgart, initially operating once a week at the start and end of the season. During peak summer months, flights will increase to twice weekly. These services will also benefit from government subsidies.
For the first time, Mostar Airport will be connected to Istanbul with scheduled flights. Turkish low-cost carrier Ajet will offer a weekly service from Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen Airport to Mostar, utilizing a Boeing 737-800 aircraft.
Meanwhile, Air Serbia and Croatia Airlines will maintain their three weekly flights each to Belgrade and Zagreb.
Banja Luka Airport is set to experience an increase in both flights and seat capacity, as Ryanair expands its services to include more flights from Gothenburg and Stockholm. Meanwhile, Wizz Air will ramp up its operations from Basel, offering flights six times a week (daily except Saturdays) for most of the summer season.
Air Serbia, which had initially planned to increase its flights from Belgrade to three weekly services, has now canceled this plan. Instead of offering daily flights Air Serbia will reduce its services from three to just two weekly flights. Given Air Serbia’s lack of interest in developing the Belgrade-Banja Luka route, the airport may want to consider offering subsidies to a European legacy carrier to establish at least one direct connection to a major hub. This would provide convenient one-stop access to wide range of global destinations.
Austrian Airlines, with its five weekly flights to Vienna, or Turkish Airlines, with three to five weekly flights to Istanbul, would be ideal candidates to serve such a route.
Additionally, the following airlines will not be returning to Banja Luka this summer:
After months of stagnation, Tuzla Airport is set to welcome new route by Wizz Air. Starting June 15, Wizz Air will introduce flights between Vienna and Tuzla four times a week. Additionally, the airline is increasing its frequency on the Dortmund and Memmingen routes, with both now being operated daily from June 1. This summer, Tuzla Airport will also see new carriers, including A Jet and Pegasus Airlines, both offering one weekly flight from Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen Airport. Corendon Airlines will replace last year’s Tailwind Airlines, operating charter flights to Antalya.
In comparison to the same period last year, Tuzla Airport will see a significant increase in both the number of flights and seats available. The number of seats offered will rise from 101,880 last year to 246,460 this year, reflecting a remarkable increase of 141.9%, or 144,580 additional seats. The number of flights will rise from 566 last year to 1.316 this year representing an increase of 132,50%, or 750 additional flights.
The Prime Minister of Tuzla Canton Irfan Halilagić has announced that Wizz Air will introduce two new routes by the end of summer—Cologne and Gothenburg. Additionally, Wizz Air will establish a base at Tuzla Airport by the end of summer season, with one aircraft stationed at Tuzla Airport. This new base will allow Wizz Air to operate flights to Cologne, Gothenburg, and Vienna directly from Tuzla, while routes to Basel, Dortmund, and Memmingen will be serviced by aircraft from other Wizz Air bases.
Source: Zahid Krkić
