NEWS FLASH

Qatar Airways plans to expand its European network in the coming period. The move comes after the airline significantly reduced capacity in former Yugoslav markets over the past six years, primarily due to a shortage of narrow-body aircraft. The carrier’s new CEO, Hamad Al-Khater, recently met with his counterpart at Airbus and confirmed the first deliveries of the Airbus A321neo. “Qatar Airways expects the first batch of A321s to arrive in the fourth quarter of the year, expanding its options for secondary cities in Europe and emerging markets”, Mr Al-Khater said. 

Prior to the pandemic, Qatar Airways served both Skopje and Sarajevo on a year-round basis, with the latter since downgraded to a summer seasonal operation, while Skopje has been discontinued. At the same time, flights to Zagreb and Belgrade operated at higher frequencies than they do today. In 2020, the carrier had also planned to launch services to Dubrovnik. Over the past year, authorities in Macedonia, Slovenia and Montenegro have all expressed interest in securing new Qatar Airways flights.