Ryanair launching new Banja Luka and Pula service

Europe’s largest carrier, Ryanair, will launch a new service from Gothenburg to Banja Luka this coming winter season and inaugurate operations between Vienna and Pula in the summer of 2021.

Flights between the second largest cities of Sweden and Bosnia and Herzegovina will commence on 25 October and operate twice per week, Thursday and Sunday. The Ryanair Group is also introducing operations from Vienna and Bergamo to Banja Luka at the end of October, complementing existing services from Charleroi, Memmingen, Hahn and Berlin. However, operations to Hahn will be discontinued from 30 November after the carrier decided to shut its base there over a pay dispute with pilots, while service to Berlin will not resume until next summer season, in March.

Ryanair previously served Banja Luka from Sweden with flights from Skavsta. However, the route was discontinued following the closure of the company’s base in the Swedish city. Banja Luka Airport recently said it was negotiating with airlines over the introduction of new routes. Prior to the Coronavirus pandemic, the airport said it was targeting three new routes in 2020 and 35% passenger growth. In 2019, Banja Luka Airport handled 149,966 travellers and registered year-on-year growth of 314%. Currently, Banja Luka is served by Ryanair from Charleroi and Hahn, Air Serbia from Belgrade, as well as Freebird Airlines from Antalya which is running summer charters.

Ryanair will become the only airline to serve Pula from Vienna. Services will run on a seasonal summer basis and operate twice per week, Wednesday and Sunday, starting 28 March. Flights will be operated by Ryanair’s new offshoot Lauda Europe with its Airbus A320 aircraft. Ryanair maintains seasonal operations from Charleroi, Stansted and Berlin to Pula. However, flights from Germany’s capital will end this October and are not expected to resume from Berlin’s new Brandenburg Airport next year.