By Joey Gerardi
Air Serbia Announces U.S. Route Network Expansion
Air Serbia — the Serbian national airline —with a hub in Belgrade, Serbia has announced plans to increase service to the United States, one aspect of which will include a new destination on its route map.
In a press release from the airline which was posted to their website, they announced they will increase service to the current airport they serve in the United States, JFK in New York City, from two weekly flights to three weekly flights, starting this coming winter season. Flights between the Serbian capital and New York City will now operate every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.
Boško Rupić, the General Manager of Commercial and Strategy at Air Serbia did have something to say about this increase in flights to New York, “The addition of another weekly flight to New York during the winter season is a clear indicator that our flight over the Atlantic is working out well and that it represents one of Air Serbia’s strongest routes.”
The airline also announced they would be adding flights to Chicago O’Hare, giving the first link between the two cities in over 30 years. Flights to Chicago will operate on a twice-weekly basis similar to how flights to New York began six years ago. While they have announced the flights will operate twice a week, they didn’t mention which days of the week the service would operate.
Although there is not an exact start date yet for the Chicago flights, the airline did mention in its press release that they would start the new Chicago flights in April of 2023. Boško Rupić also had some comments regarding the new destination in the United States, “With one of the biggest diasporas from Serbia and other countries in the region, for a long time now, and for us, it [Chicago] is a route of exceptional strategic importance. We expect great passenger demand for the new flights with Chicago as their final destination, as well as those using the city as a layover for further destinations.”
The airline only has a single long-haul aircraft, an Airbus A330-200, which features famous Serbian scientist Nikola Tesla on the tail of the aircraft. Before the flights begin to Chicago next spring, the airline will need to and has plans to introduce another Airbus A330-200 to its fleet which is set to arrive at the airline sometime this fall.
Joe has always been interested in planes, for as long as he can remember. He grew up in Central New York during the early 2000s when US Airways Express turboprops ruled the skies. Being from a non-aviation family made it harder for him to be around planes and would only spend about three hours a month at the airport. He was so excited when he could drive by himself and the first thing he did with the license was get ice cream and go plane spotting for the entire day. When he has the time (and money) he likes to take spotting trips to any location worth a visit. He’s currently enrolled at Western Michigan University earning a degree in Aviation Management and Operations.