Macedonian and Bulgarian delegations will travel on board
The first plane on the renewed Sofia-Skopje airline took off today. The flight, which will be operated by Gulliver Airlines, is expected to arrive at the international airport in the capital of the Republic of Northern Macedonia at around 09:45 local time, and a Macedonian and Bulgarian delegations led by Transport Ministers Nikolay Sabev and Blagoy Bochvarski.
The delegation also includes tour operators from both countries, BTA points out.
Details of the airline’s future operation, which is expected to become regular next month, will also be discussed in Skopje. Tour operators will be able to exchange information on possible travel packages to help increase the number of visits by tourists from both countries.
The air connection between the capitals of the Republic of Northern Macedonia and the Republic of Bulgaria is the first concrete step in the co-operation announced by Prime Ministers Kiril Petkov and Dimitar Kovachevski at their first meeting in Skopje on January 18th this year. On January 25th, the two governments held a joint meeting in Sofia, signing a memorandum to strengthen infrastructural connectivity between the two countries.
This is not the first airline that directly connects the two capitals.
On April 25, 1965, an international air line of TABSO was opened on the route Sofia – Skopje. At 08:00 the first IL-14 plane took off from Sofia Airport, which landed at the airport in Skopje in 51 minutes. The passengers were greeted by officials, led by Republican Secretary of Transport and Communications Georgi Ruskovski, journalists and many citizens. The first course on the new line was performed by a crew consisting of: Commander Vladimir Vladov, co-pilot – Hristo Kostadinov, radio operator – Peter Kunov, mechanic – Lazar Tashkov and flight attendants – Maria Ivanova and Lyubka Stoilova. Flights from Sofia to Skopje run on Sunday.
Years later, after Bulgaria officially recognized the Republic of Macedonia on January 15, 1992, in March of the same year the Minister of Transport Alexander Alexandrov agreed with the Minister of Transport and Communications of the Republic of Macedonia Alexander Lepavtsov the Sofia-Tirana route. , opened a year earlier, with a direct landing in Skopje. On May 6, 1992, in Sofia, the Minister of Transport Alexander Alexandrov officially opened the line. The Minister of Transport and Communications of Macedonia, Alexander Lepavtsov, arrived from Skopje on May 6, 1992.
On the evening of May 21, 1992, the flight of the state airline Hemus Air was operated on the newly opened scheduled flight Sofia-Skopje. There are 25 passengers on the Yak-40 plane, which lasts about 20 minutes. Flights from Sofia to Skopje are operated on Thursday, Friday and Saturday mornings, and in the opposite direction on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. A one-way ticket costs $ 60 and a one-way ticket costs $ 90. Pal Air also operates flights to Sofia on Yak-40 aircraft.
On December 14, 2007, the Minister of Transport Petar Mutafchiev opened the airline on the route Sofia-Skopje, which is served by the airline “Bulgaria Air”. In his welcoming speech, Mutafchiev pointed out that the opening of the airline aims to normalize Bulgaria’s air connections with all European capitals. At the airport in Skopje they were met by Mile Janakieski – Minister of Transport and Communications of our southwestern neighbor, Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Skender Paloshi, and the Ambassador of Bulgaria to Macedonia Miho Mihov. The line Sofia – Skopje is covered three times a week and has a very good connection in Sofia to the destinations for other European capitals. The price of a one-way ticket Sofia-Skopje is 39 euros. The flights were terminated by the carrier in 2009.
