Sarajevo International Airport

Sarajevo International Airport (Bosnian: Međunarodni aerodrom Sarajevo, Serbian: Међународни аеродром Сарајево, Croatian: Međunarodna zračna luka Sarajevo) (IATA: SJJ, ICAO: LQSA) is the main international airport in Bosnia and Herzegovina, serving its capital Sarajevo. It is located 3.3 NM (6.1 km; 3.8 mi) southwest of the Sarajevo railway station and some 6.5 NM (12.0 km; 7.5 mi) west of downtown Sarajevo in the Ilidža municipality, suburb of Butmir. In 2025, 2,226,692 passengers travelled through the airport, compared to 323,499 in 2001. History Early years First regular flights to Sarajevo using an airfield in the suburb of Butmir begin in 1930 when the domestic airline Aeroput opened a regular route linking Belgrade to Podgorica via Sarajevo. A year later, Aeroput opened a new route which linked Belgrade and Zagreb via Sarajevo, Split, and Rijeka. In 1935, Aeroput operated three times weekly the non-stop route Belgrade – Sarajevo, which was extended to Dubrovnik a year later. In 1937, Aeroput included regular flights linking Sarajevo to Zagreb, and 1938 was the year when first international flights were introduced when Aeroput extended the route Dubrovnik – Sarajevo – Zagreb to Vienna, Brno, and Prague. At the beginning of the Bosnian War, the airport was put under control of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA). When the regular flights were stopped, the JNA evacuated some 30,000 people, mostly women and children, who were spouses and children of JNA officers fleeing the siege of Sarajevo; the first humanitarian aid from the US and France arrived in this period too. On 2 May 1992 Bosnian President Alija Izetbegović and his daughter flew into the airport from Lisbon, where they had been taking part in EC-mediated talks. Although guaranteed EC Protection, the airport had been seized by the JNA and they were held in the airport against their will. Their situation was made public when, that evening, a woman phoned the airport to ask for the whereabouts of her daughter and Izetbegović took the phone, proclaiming "Dear lady, this is President Izetbegović, please call the Presidency, call the TV station and tell them we are being held against our will!". Izetbegović negotiated his own release, leading to himself and his daughter being released on Dobrovoljačka Street in exchange for safe passage of an ill-fated JNA column. After JNA left, the airport was for a while under control of Bosnian Serb forces and in June 1992, they handed over the airport to the UN to use it for humanitarian purposes (United Nations Security Council Resolution 757). In the biggest humanitarian operation in history of the UN that followed, during the Bosnian war, some 13,000 flights were carried out and over 160,000 tons of international humanitarian aid was delivered to the besieged city of Sarajevo. The airport re-opened to civilian air traffic on 16 August 1996 and has since been renovated and slowly restored. Since the Dayton Agreement in 1995, the airport has a commercial flight business which includes Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa, Air Serbia, Croatia Airlines, Turkish Airlines, and others. Development in the 2000s On 18 October 2005, Paddy Ashdown, the High Representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina, suspended a decision by Bosnian authorities to name the airport after Alija Izetbegović, the first President of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The High Representative stated that such a renaming might undermine the reconciliation process by alienating non-Bosniak citizens. In 2005, the European branch of the Airports Council International awarded Sarajevo the award of Best Airport Under 1 Million Passengers. In 2013, Sarajevo International Airport handled 665,638 passengers which was more than all of the other airports in Bosnia and Herzegovina combined and a 14.7% increase from 2012. This was till then the highest number of passengers per year since the reopening of the airport. On 26 December 2014, the airport welcomed its 700,000th passenger on Austrian Airlines flight OS758 to Vienna. In May 2015, work started on expansion of Sarajevo International Airport. Current work is undergoing on expansion of arrival area, adding more passport control check stands and rearranging whole arrival area to make it more passenger friendly. Next to follow is expansion of check in area which will include three more check in counters making it total of 15 check in counters. By the end of the year the airport will begin with platform expansion and the construction of rapid exit taxiway with scheduled completion by mid of the next year. 2017 should be the year in which airport will enter into the reconstruction of the runway and the maneuvering areas. Expansion of the airport at the current level is financed by Sarajevo Airport own funds. On 6 June 2015, Pope Francis visited Sarajevo arriving on an Alitalia Airbus A320-200 from Rome. Welcome ceremony was held at Sarajevo International Airport. The airport served as the home base for the country's flag carrier, B&H Airlines, until July 2015 when the airline ceased operations. During December 2015, Sarajevo Airport experienced very low visibility and fog. About 40% of flights were canceled which impacted passengers growth and financial loss to the airport. Airport handled only 28,167 passengers of 50,000 planned (last year in December 43,079 passengers were handled). For Sarajevo International Airport one of major restrictions is a mountain terrain that requires a high approach precision and a big inclination angle in a procedure of unsuccessful approach and landing. Vlado Jurić, Head of the Office for aviation safety at Bosnia and Herzegovina Air Navigation Services Agency (BHANSA), presented the information about problems caused by reduced minimums at Sarajevo Airport. For the implementation of ILS categories (CAT II or CAT III), the terrain in front of the runway start should be free of obstacles for at least 1,000 metres. It means that the RWY 12 threshold should be moved for additional 200 metres which would reduce the runway length and as such is unacceptable. From the point of view of procedure design, the reduction of minimums is not an option and therefore it is necessary to find other solutions for improvement of landing conditions at Sarajevo Airport. The biggest problem at Sarajevo Airport is fog. The representative of Sarajevo Airport, Mr Nermin Zijadić informed that there is a relevant plan regarding this problem. He also presented the information about future projects of Sarajevo Airport among which the most important one is a reconstruction of the runway including its lighting system. In 2016, Qatar Airways announced a new route from Doha to Sarajevo. However, the start of this service was first postponed and then moved to 10 October 2017. with four weekly flights. On 5 December 2016, the airport welcomed its 800,000th passenger on Air Serbia flight JU113 to Belgrade. In 2017, Sarajevo International Airport welcomed six new airlines and seven destinations: AtlasGlobal (Istanbul), Wizz Air (Budapest), Wataniya Airways (Kuwait City), Nesma Airlines (Riyadh), TUI fly Belgium (Charleroi), flydubai (Dubai), Qatar Airways (Doha). On 28 November 2017, Sarajevo International Airport received its 900,000th passenger of the year, representing a record number of passengers in one calendar year. On 5 December 2018, Sarajevo International Airport welcomed for the first time its millionth passenger of the year. On 3 May 2017, the airport announced a major terminal expansion. The project is worth 20 million Euros and scheduled to be completed in 2020. A new, 10,000 sqm building on four levels will be built as an addition to the current terminal building. The new terminal will have capacity to handle 2 million passengers per year and will be equipped with three jet bridges. On 9 April 2019, the airport announced expansion of the VIP area into a new VIP building as part of the expansion project for the new main terminal with a separate check-in, customs and arrival section for VIP travellers. During June–July 2019, the airport saw its largest destination expansion. A total of 10 new destinations were added. FlyBosnia started flights from Sarajevo to Riyadh, Kuwait, Jeddah, Gassim, and Bahrain. Flynas started flights from Riyadh and Jeddah. Norwegian started flights from Gothenburg, while Eurowings started flights from Berlin Tegel Airport. In October and November 2019, FlyBosnia started flights to London Luton and Rome Fiumicino Airport. 2020s On 17 November 2020, Sarajevo International Airport terminated its contract with FlyBosnia after the company failed to repay its debts within 60 days. On 3 February 2021, Wizz Air announced the opening of its second base in Bosnia and Herzegovina, after Tuzla; the airline will open a base at Sarajevo with one Airbus A320. The airline announced nine new European destinations from Sarajevo with 21 weekly departures. On 12 August 2021, Wizz Air has subsequently announced that it will base its second aircraft at Sarajevo International Airport. It is planned to launch 7 new routes from December 2021. Also, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi plans to introduce direct routes between Sarajevo and Abu Dhabi in October 2021. However, in September 2022, Wizz Air announced it would close its base at the airport, ending all routes except those to London and Abu Dhabi. In 2024 Ryanair introduced six routes connecting Sarajevo with: Bergamo, Charleroi, Gothenburg, London–Stansted, Memmingen and Thessaloniki. Ryanair doubles traffic at Sarajevo for Summer 2025 with five new routes – Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden Airport, Weeze Airport, Girona Costa Brava Airport, Paris Beauvais Airport, and Stockholm Arlanda Airport, bringing Sarajevo route network to 11 in eight countries Airlines and destinations Passenger The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Sarajevo International Airport: Cargo Statistics Traffic figures Passengers, cargo and movements Busiest routes Transport By car Sarajevo Airport is connected to the Sarajevo–Zenica–Mostar highway (A1) via the nearby Stup Interchange and Briješće Interchange. The airport is accessible by taxi and private vehicles, with a dedicated drop-off and pick-up area in front of Terminal B. Multiple car rental companies operate directly at the airport, offering vehicles for short-term and long-term rental. Parking facilities include both short-term and long-term parking lots, as well as designated spaces for premium and disabled passengers. Traffic signage is well-marked, and the journey from Sarajevo city center typically takes about 20–25 minutes under normal traffic conditions. By bus and public transport Regular city bus services connect Sarajevo Airport with the city center. Bus line 200E operates between the airport and Sarajevo central areas, including key locations such as the Old Town and the main bus terminal. Buses run at intervals of approximately 30–60 minutes, depending on the day and time. Tickets can be purchased onboard or at designated kiosks. Taxi and shuttle services Taxis are available outside Terminal B. Licensed airport taxis offer fixed rates to major parts of Sarajevo. Several shuttle services and hotel transfer options are also available, which can be booked in advance. Rent a car Numerous car rental agencies operate at Sarajevo Airport, enabling passengers to rent a vehicle immediately upon arrival. These services offer a variety of vehicles for business travelers and tourists visiting Sarajevo and other destinations across Bosnia and Herzegovina. Additional information about car rental services at the airport can be found on the official local website. By trolleybus The airport is connected with Sarajevo's city center with trolleybus number 103, operated by the GRAS transport company. Accidents and incidents 18 January 1977: Džemal Bijedić, then prime minister of Yugoslavia, and his wife were among the eight people killed when their Learjet 25 crashed on the Inač mountain near Kreševo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The plane took off from Batajnica Air Base in Belgrade and was en route to Sarajevo when it crashed, ostensibly due to poor weather conditions. Conspiracy theorists have suggested that the crash was not an accident but rather the result of foul play at the hands of his rivals. 31 December 1994: A Belair Ilyushin-76TD cargo plane, registration EW-76836, was operating on a flight from Luxembourg to Sarajevo on behalf of the United Nations. At the time of landing at Sarajevo airport, the runway was flooded and the aircraft overran the runway and struck a ditch with the nose gear. There were no fatalities among the 11 people on board, but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair. See also List of airports in Bosnia and Herzegovina Tuzla International Airport Mostar International Airport Banja Luka International Airport References External links Media related to Sarajevo International Airport at Wikimedia Commons Official website Sarajevo International Airport upgrade 2010 Archived 8 May 2016 at the Wayback Machine "Current weather for LQSA". NOAA/NWS. Accident history for SJJ at Aviation Safety Network