Friday, Oct 25, 2013
Belgrade -- Air Serbia was officially launched by Deputy Prime Minister Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic ćon Friday.
The carrier’s first Airbus A319 in the new Air Serbia livery of red, blue and white, and boasting the new logo bearing a stylised Serbian national coat of arms designed by Serbian student Tamara Maksimovic, was unveiled by Vučić at a glittering ceremony at Belgrade Airport.
Eithad Airways will inject $250 million by August 2014 which will help for further growth and expansion with Air Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia.
Vucic declined to confirm if Abu Dubai approved the $3billion loan that the Serbian government asked for. But he said that their government will tackle the issue of negative debt and reduce the deficit.
Senior government deligation will be arriving Abu Dhabi on Sunday to discus further cooperation between the two countires.
Tennis sensation Novak Djokovic is the first high profile Serbian whose name will be used as part of a series of ‘Serbian living legends’ to appear on the new national airline.
The first aircraft unveiled by the Deputy Prime Minister during an event at Belgrade airport. Another six Airbus A319 and A320 will be adding to Air Serbia fleet in the coming two months while four more crafts will be delivered next year according to the development plan for the national Serbian carrier.
Air Serbia’s Airbus A 319 aircraft will support the airlines new route network, which will double its current frequencies and capacity by June 2014, serving 43 destinations in 30 countries, offering 73,000 seats on over 670 flights per week form Belgrade.
The first flight of Air Serbia will take off from Belgrade on October 26, 2013 to Abu Dhabi while new routs will be launched by the end of the year to Banja Luka (Bosnia), Bucharest (Romania), Ljubljana (Slovenia) and Prague (Czech Republic).
Highlighting the significance of their partnership with Etihad, Vucic, said: “Our partnership with Eithad Airways will make our national carrier a profitable company in less than a year.”
Dane Kondic, CEO of Air Serbia said: “We have been able to attract external investment, in addition to our own Government commitment, to rebuild this airline into something special. We are bringing in the best technical skills, business know-how and expertise to ensure Air Serbia evolves into a successful airline.
To meet the current economic growth in Serbia we have to go for such investment and partnership, he added.
James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ President and Chief Executive Officer, said: “Equity alliance with Air Serbia has benefits on the commercial and investment levels. It enhances our network and connectivity with different destination as well as broaden our fleet.’
By Zaher Bitar Senior Reporter
Gulf News 2013. All rights reserved.
