Air Canada has confirmed interest in Belgrade

Aviatica has been told by Air Canada that there is some consideration for establishing the Belgrade route.

The media relations department of Air Canada confirmed looking into scheduled service to Belgrade.

“We are still reviewing our network schedule for certain destinations, including Belgrade,” was told us. After we ask for clarification if this means that Belgrade is included in network development plans but still waits for schedule, Air Canada said: “We are looking into it at this moment.”

According to unofficial but reliable sources involved in this matter, Air Serbia also considers Belgrade – Toronto flights.

Is the Air Transport Agreement a problem?

Both airlines are faced with some legal obstacles from the bilateral agreement between the Government of Canada and the Government of the Republic of Serbia on Air Transport.

The agreement signed on 21 May 2018 and placed in force on 25 March 2019 allows scheduled flights operated by airlines from both countries designated by the air transport administrations. Although it is a very liberal agreement, there is a restrictive clause.

Routing between two countries is defined by Annex clause 7, which said that a maximum of two (return) flights per week are allowed by each side. However, there is a possibility for changing the capacity limit only if there is concurrence. It could be a massive setback in case the two sides have different plans. Just as an example, we can imagine that Air Canada may want to fly three times per week, and Air Serbia, from the other side, has capacity only for two weekly flights. Why will the second one allow higher capacity for its competitor?

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Flights to Zagreb

Air Canada has confirmed Zagreb plans as well. From next year there will be scheduled flights from Toronto to Zagreb, Croatia. According to Ex-Yu Aviation, Air Canada will start the new route from 2 June 2022 with three flights per week, using its own Airbus A330-200. Bookings are not possible yet, though.

“Regarding Toronto to Zagreb, this route is currently in our schedule, selling for 2022, but subject to change depending on how the current situation evolves”, said Air Canada’s media relations department.

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