Ryanair has solidified its position as the leading low cost carrier in the former Yugoslavia for a second consecutive summer, outpacing rival Wizz Air. Ryanair, which serves four out of seven markets in the region, compared to Wizz Air, which operates in all of them, has 5.020.450 seats on the market this summer season, up 12.7% on last year, or an additional 567.616 seats on summer 2024. Over 80% of Ryanair’s capacity in the former Yugoslavia this summer is in Croatia, where it has just over four million seats on sale, up from 3.8 million last year, or an increase of 8.2%. The airline has 597.332 seats in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where it has added an additional 236.376 seats. Ryanair is also growing in Serbia, where it has added 31.506 seats on its Niš operations. Bucking the trend is Montenegro, where the airline has reduced capacity by 17.4% this summer, or 44.180 seats, for a total of 209.688.
Wizz Air lost its top spot last year as the former Yugoslavia’s largest low cost operator amid issues with its fleet, resulting in the suspension of a number of routes and reduced frequencies on others. The carrier is beginning to mount a comeback this summer and has 3.677.782 seats in the region, up 15.2% on last year, or close to half a million additional seats. For the first time in more than a decade, Serbia will become Wizz Air’s largest market in the region, ahead of Macedonia. The budget carrier has 1.209.280 seats on its Belgrade and Niš operations, up 20.4%, or over 200.000 additional seats. On the other hand, it boasts 1.200.610 seats on the Macedonian market, a slight 0.9% decrease on the previous summer.
Wizz Air’s third largest market in the former Yugoslavia is Bosnia and Herzegovina, where it has added 201.332 seats for a total of 383.236. In Pristina, the airline boasts 336.110 seats this summer, up 26.8%, or an additional 71.000 seats. Montenegro follows with 303.442 seats, an improvement of 12.2%. Croatia bucks the trend as the only market in the former Yugoslavia this summer where Wizz Air will have less capacity than last summer. The airline has put 245.104 seats on sale, down 4.3%, or close to 11.000 fewer seats. The carrier has 41.760 seats in Slovenia, up 28.9%, or an additional 9.360 seats.
Ryanair will only be larger than Wizz Air in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, however, its sheer volume of operations has secured its position as the largest low cost carrier in the former Yugoslavia this summer.
