The tenth ATR 72-600 aircraft of Air Serbia, with registration code YU-ASC, landed today at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport and after the mandatory procedures, it is expected to be added to Air Serbia's operations in the coming days. With the arrival of this aircraft, the Serbian national airline has completed the process of modernizing and expanding its regional fleet at this moment, which began in January 2022.
The first ATR 72-600 aircraft of Air Serbia, with the registration code YU-ALY, landed at Belgrade Airport on 27 January 2022, the second, YU-ALW, on 14 May 2022, and the third, YU-ALX, on 14 July 2022. The fourth ATR 72-600, YU-ALZ, joined the Air Serbia fleet on 1 December 2022, while the fifth, YU-ASA, and the sixth aircraft of the same type, YU-ASB, entered the fleet on 12 January and 23 June 2023, respectively. The seventh ATR, YU-ASD, joined the Air Serbia regional fleet on 8 September 2023, the eighth, YU-ASF, on 17 April 2024, while the ninth aircraft of the same type landed at Belgrade Airport on 15 May 2024.
“The renewal of the turbo-prop fleet was one of the key strategic objectives of our company. Previously used ATR 72-200 and ATR 72-500 aircraft have been gradually replaced by more modern ATR 72-600 aircraft. Despite challenging market conditions, we have managed to acquire as many as ten aircraft of the same type, thus standardizing our fleet. The average age of aircraft in our regional fleet is now 9 years, making it the youngest in the broader Western Balkans region. We are extremely pleased with the choice of aircraft and the pace of their entry into service. Thanks to them, we have significantly improved our operational efficiency,” said Jiri Marek, CEO of Air Serbia.
The ATR 72-600 aircraft that make up Air Serbia's regional fleet operate flights on routes of the Serbian national airline from Belgrade to Bologna, Bari, Budapest, Krakow, Ljubljana, Prague, Sarajevo, Skopje, Sofia, Venice, Vienna, Zagreb, Banja Luka, Bucharest, Podgorica, Tirana, Niš, Tivat, Salzburg, Dubrovnik, Thessaloniki, Split, Rijeka, Varna, Pula, Zadar, and Ohrid. Aircraft of the same type are also used for flights from international airports in Niš and Kraljevo. Air Serbia operates flights from Kraljevo to Istanbul, Thessaloniki, and Tivat, and from Niš to Belgrade, Ljubljana, and Athens.
The latest addition to the Air Serbia fleet, the aircraft ATR 72-600 with registration mark YU-ASC, is 9 years old and has a configuration of 72 Geven Prestige seats, providing passengers with greater comfort and pleasure. It is equipped with two PW127M turboprop engines, is 27.17 meters long, and has a wingspan of 27.05 meters. The maximum cruising speed it can reach is around 500 km/h, while the maximum range at full capacity is about 1,500 km. The aircraft was painted in the livery of the Serbian national airline in Toulouse, and since 10 May, it has been undergoing handover and technical inspection procedures in France.