Menzies Aviation, the leading service partner to the world’s airports and airlines, an Agility company, has today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Air Serbia, the leading airline in the wider Balkan region, to form a joint venture to support the Serbian national flag carrier’s ambitious growth plans.
As part of the planned cooperation, Menzies will deliver passenger and ramp services at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport (BEG) beginning in February 2024. The agreement, Menzies biggest deal in Eastern Europe to date, will see local teams manage more than 22,000 turns in the first year at the largest and busiest airport in Serbia.
The move is the latest step by Air Serbia to expand its network. With approximately 50% market share in BEG, the airline successfully grew its network to 15 new destinations in 2022, with a further 23 routes in 2023 including the United States, China, Greece, Italy, Germany, Poland and many others. It is also set to launch a new service between Belgrade and Porto in November, adding Portugal’s second largest city to its destination network.
Hassan El Houry, Chairman – Menzies Aviation, said: “We are extremely excited by the opportunity to work with Air Serbia, helping the airline achieve further domestic and international growth. Strategically, as the number one service provider in the world, and number one provider in the region, this venture represents a major step for Menzies, supporting our ambitions to expand our presence in the Balkans and support emerging aviation markets. We are looking forward to delivering market leading, high quality aviation services in the Balkans with the fast-growing Air Serbia, and increasing our market share at Belgrade Airport.”
Jiri Marek, CEO, Air Serbia, said: “We are extremely pleased about the upcoming cooperation with such a renowned aviation services provider as Menzies Aviation. During this year’s summer season, Air Serbia recorded unprecedented growth, but at the same time faced certain challenges in the field of ground handling. I want to apologize once again to all passengers affected by the situation at our hub this summer. Even during the season, we reacted quickly to that situation by hiring additional personnel in record time. Now we are taking the next step because in 2024 we want to provide the best possible service for our passengers and a reliable partner for the further growth of the company.”
About Menzies Aviation:
Menzies Aviation is the leading service partner to the world’s airports and airlines, with operations on six continents, at more than 255 airports in 60-plus countries, serving more than 4 million flights a year and handling over 2 million tonnes of cargo. Supported by a team of over 40,000 highly trained people, the company provides complex and time-critical ground services, including passenger, lounge and ramp services; air cargo services, including handling, warehousing and wholesale freight forwarding; and fuel services, including fuel farm management and into-plane fuelling.
Menzies Aviation is recognised across the industry for delivering the safest, most secure and sustainable services tailored to customers’ needs and is essential to keeping passengers, aircraft and cargo moving, round the clock, every minute of every day.
Menzies Aviation is headquartered in London, and since its founding in 1833, has become the largest aviation services group in the world by number of countries and aircraft turns.
