Serbia’s new national carrier started flying yesterday with its first aircraft since Etihad Airways acquired a 49 per cent equity stake in August.
Air Serbia is cutting 333 jobs as it targets profitability within the first year of its privatisation.
“We have 333 registered for the redundancy programme,” said deputy prime minister Aleksandar Vucic. That brings the total number of employees to 970 in the near term. “We expect that in less than a year, this company will be profitable and charge taxes and the state gets its due. Because this state wants to make money and not lose money.”
Air Serbia is the first of a series of planned privatisation efforts by Serbia’s government to reduce its fiscal deficit. Earlier this month, Mr Vucic unveiled austerity measures which included the reduction of public sector salaries to curb excessive spending.
“The state is almost bankrupt but we will do our best … to prevent it,” he said at the time. “We are almost bankrupt, in the true sense of the word, and measures of economic recovery will be difficult.”
The deputy premier’s statements on Friday came ahead of planned talks with Abu Dhabi’s Government yesterday.
Etihad helped to relaunch Serbia’s loss-making airline Jat Airways as Air Serbia following financial pledges of US$40 million, which will be converted into a 49 per cent equity shareholding next January. The agreement, signed in August, also requires Etihad to make available up to $60m to meet Air Serbia’s operational requirements and network development.
“We are confident that this airline will move to profitability and meet the objectives of Serbia. It will also meet the objectives of Etihad as an investor,” said James Hogan, Etihad’s chief executive.
Air Serbia unveiled its first Airbus A319 with its new livery of red, blue and white. The aircraft was the first of six Airbus A319s and two A320s leased by Air Serbia.
“Air Serbia shows that Serbia can be a modern country even in its darkest hour, by creating a powerful national carrier that can outperform and make money,” Mr Vucic said.
He hopes the carrier will help to develop the country’s tourism sector and overall economy.
“Etihad Airways is an obvious example of how an airline in 10 years that brought $10 billion to the Abu Dhabi economy and opening thousands of jobs,” Mr Vucic said.
Air Serbia’s predecessor, Jat Airways, had been a loss-making airline for more than 15 years.
Its debts would be written off by the government, Mr Vucic said.
“For most of you Jat has offered your first experience of flying, it has a special place in our hearts,” said Dane Kondic, the chief executive at Air Serbia. “But the airline industry has become deregulated and more competitive. The global economic environment has been increasingly challenged and our air carrier had to be changed in order to respond to the changes taking place around the world.”
halsayegh@thenational.ae
Inside%20Out%202
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EKelsey%20Mann%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%C2%A0Amy%20Poehler%2C%20Maya%20Hawke%2C%20Ayo%20Edebiri%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E4.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
The bio
Favourite vegetable: Broccoli
Favourite food: Seafood
Favourite thing to cook: Duck l'orange
Favourite book: Give and Take by Adam Grant, one of his professors at University of Pennsylvania
Favourite place to travel: Home in Kuwait.
Favourite place in the UAE: Al Qudra lakes
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPowertrain%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESingle%20electric%20motor%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E201hp%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E310Nm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESingle-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E53kWh%20lithium-ion%20battery%20pack%20(GS%20base%20model)%3B%2070kWh%20battery%20pack%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETouring%20range%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E350km%20(GS)%3B%20480km%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh129%2C900%20(GS)%3B%20Dh149%2C000%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
MATCH INFO
Liverpool v Manchester City, Sunday, 8.30pm UAE
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Banned items
Dubai Police has also issued a list of banned items at the ground on Sunday. These include:
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Political flags or banners
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Bikes, skateboards or scooters
Pari
Produced by: Clean Slate Films (Anushka Sharma, Karnesh Sharma) & KriArj Entertainment
Director: Prosit Roy
Starring: Anushka Sharma, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Ritabhari Chakraborty, Rajat Kapoor, Mansi Multani
Three stars
Match info
Newcastle United 1
Joselu (11')
Tottenham Hotspur 2
Vertonghen (8'), Alli (18')
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The specs
Engine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Power: 575bhp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: Dh554,000
On sale: now
Fire and Fury
By Michael Wolff,
Henry Holt
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
