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[2][3][4] (Macedonian: Меѓународен аеродром Скопје, romanized: Megjunaroden aerodrom Skopje, Albanian: Aeroporti Ndërkombëtar i Shkupit) (IATA: SKP, ICAO: LWSK), also known as Skopje Airport and Petrovec Airport is the larger and busier of the two international airports in North Macedonia, with the other being the St. Paul the Apostle Airport in Ohrid, which is located 170 km (110 mi) southwest[1] from the national capital Skopje.

History

Terminal interior

Early years

The first flight and landing in Skopje was done in 1912 during the Balkan war by Serbian military aviators. In 1915, Skopje became part of Bulgaria during World War I and a military airport was established there, which was key for Bulgarian and German aviation. The Skopje Airport itself did not exist as a modern civil airport, but as a field aerodrome for military needs. In late September 1918, during the Vardar offensive, Skopje became the airfield of the 1st Section of the 73rd Squadron of the British Royal Army, part of the British and French forces in Italy during World War I. It remained in then South Serbia until August 1919.

First Terminal building

An airport was built in 1928 near what is today a neighborhood called Aerodrom. The first commercial flights in Skopje were introduced in 1929 when the Yugoslav carrier Aeroput introduced a route linking the city with the capital, Belgrade.[5] A year later, the route was extended to Thessaloniki and further to Athens in 1933.[5] In 1935, Aeroput linked Skopje with Bitola and Niš, and also operated a longer international route linking Vienna and Thessaloniki through Zagreb, Belgrade and Skopje.[5]

After the occupation of the region by Bulgaria during World War II in Yugoslav Macedonia, a military airport was built in the city under the leadership of former IMRO revolutionary Konstantin Popatanasov.[6] This airport near Aerodrom, was destroyed during the bombing of Bulgaria in World War II.

First Plane Landing on Skopje’s Airport

After the Second World War, the current airport was built near a neighborhood called Petrovec and Aeroput was replaced by JAT Yugoslav Airlines, which linked Skopje to a number of domestic and international destinations until the dissolution of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s.

Development since the 2000s

In December 2006, as part of the identity policies called antiquization, the nationalist VMRO-DPMNE-led government of then Republic of Macedonia renamed the airport after Alexander the Great, sparking further controversy in the diplomatic feud with Greece. Thus, the airport was named Skopje Alexander the Great Airport from 2006 to 2018.

MAT Jet

In 2008, the Macedonian Government signed a contract with the Turkish company TAV Airports Holding for a twenty-year-long concession, during which this company would manage Macedonia’s two existing airports, the Skopje Airport and the St. Paul the Apostle Airport in Ohrid.[citation needed]

In September 2011, the new terminal building, extension of the runway, new administrative building, cargo building and new access road with parking facilities were opened.[7]

In February 2018, Alexander the Great was dropped from the airport’s name in a move to improve relations with Greece, with the airport being officially renamed Skopje International Airport.[8] A few months before, Aegean Airlines announced future flights between Athens and Skopje, the first flights to Greece for several years.[9]

Night View

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights to and from Skopje:[10]

[11]
Air Serbia Belgrade[12]
AJet Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen[13]
Seasonal: Adana/Mersin,[14] Ankara,[15] Bodrum[16]
Austrian Airlines Vienna[17]
Chair Airlines Zürich[18]
Croatia Airlines Zagreb[19]
easyJet Geneva,[20] Paris–Orly (ends 24 October 2026)[21]
Edelweiss Air Zürich[22]
Freebird Airlines Seasonal: Antalya,[23] Medina[24]
LOT Polish Airlines Warsaw–Chopin[25]
Norwegian Air Shuttle Seasonal: Oslo[26]
Pegasus Airlines Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen,[27] İzmir[27]
Seasonal: Antalya[27]
SunExpress Antalya,[28] İzmir[29]
Turkish Airlines Istanbul[30]
Wizz Air Barcelona,[31] Bari,[32] Basel/Mulhouse,[33] Berlin,[34] Bologna,[33] Bratislava,[35] Brussels-Charleroi,[34] Budapest,[36] Cologne/Bonn,[37] Dortmund,[34] Eindhoven,[33] Frankfurt-Hahn,[33] Friedrichshafen,[33] Gothenburg,[33] Hamburg,[38] Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden,[33] Larnaca (suspended between 13 April and 21 September 2026),[39] Ljubljana,[40] London–Luton,[41] Madrid,[32] Malmö,[42] Malta[43], Memmingen,[34] Milan-Bergamo,[44] Naples,[45] Nuremberg,[43] Oslo,[46] Paris-Beauvais,[47] Prague,[32] Rome-Fiumicino,[33] Sandefjord,[38] Stockholm–Arlanda,[32] Stuttgart,[31] Venice-Treviso[38]
Seasonal: Alghero,[48] Palermo[48]

Cargo

[49]
Leipzig/Halle

Statistics

Traffic development

The number of passengers has increased since 1990, from 312,492 passengers in that year, to 2,158,258 passengers in 2018, but this was not a steady increase. In 2000 the airport handled 1,005,852 passengers, but in 2001 the number of passengers dropped to 499,789.[50] This was influenced in part by a number of airlines replacing services to Skopje with services to nearby. In 2014 Skopje airport handled 1,208,359 passengers, surpassing one million for the first time since 2000.[citation needed]

Traffic figures at Skopje International Airport[citation needed]
Year Passengers Change Cargo (t) Change Aircraft movements Change
1991 397,660 Increase27.3% 1,088 Decrease41.9% 7,158 Increase106.5%
1992 390,025 Decrease1.9% 1,023 Decrease6.0% 7,079 Decrease1.1%
1993 577,425 Increase48.0% 4,338 Increase324.0% 10,681 Increase50.9%
1994 603,447 Increase4.5% 6,936 Increase59.9% 10,803 Increase1.1%
1995 583,053 Decrease3.4% 10,205 Increase47.1% 11,692 Increase8.2%
1996 422,598 Decrease27.5% 3,209 Decrease68.6% 8,618 Decrease26.3%
1997 440,988 Increase4.4% 4,881 Increase52.1% 8,995 Increase4.4%
1998 511,784 Increase16.1% 5,239 Increase7.3% 10,321 Increase14.7%
1999 840,985 Increase64.3% 11,682 Increase123.0% 23,912 Increase131.7%
2000 1,005,852 Increase19.6% 4,335 Decrease62.9% 24,234 Increase1.3%
2001 499,789 Decrease50.3% 3,262 Decrease28.8% 16,673 Decrease31.2%
2002 520,497 Increase4.1% 3,271 Increase0.3% 13,725 Decrease17.7%
2003 500,012 Decrease3.9% 2,083 Decrease36.3% 12,428 Decrease9.4%
2004 497,105 Decrease0.6% 2,004 Decrease3.8% 10,940 Decrease12.0%
2005 525,965 Increase5.8% 1,815 Decrease9.4% 12,101 Increase10.6%
2006 547,198 Increase4.0% 1,903 Increase4.8% 12,637 Increase4.4%
2007 626,144 Increase14.4% 2,194 Increase15.3% 13,085 Increase3.5%
2008 658,367 Increase5.1% 2,771 Increase26.3% 10,666 Decrease18.5%
2009 602,298 Decrease8.5% 2,125 Decrease23.3% 9,871 Decrease7.5%
2010 716,000 Increase18.9% – – – –
2011 759,918 Increase6.1% 2,376 – 10,977 –
2012 828,831 Increase9.1% 2,297 Decrease3.3% 10,418 Decrease5.1%
2013 984,407 Increase18.8% 2,504 Increase9.0% 11,276 Increase8.2%
2014 1,208,359 Increase22.7% 3,422 Increase36.7% 13,210 Increase17.2%
2015 1,452,465 Increase20.2% 2,649 Decrease22.6% 14,451 Increase9.4%
2016 1,649,374 Increase13.6% 3,090 Increase10.9% 15,407 Increase6.6%
2017 1,868,272 Increase13.3% 2,744 Decrease11.2% 16,680 Increase8.3%
2018 2,158,258 Increase15.5% 3,298 Increase20.2% 18,188 Increase9.0%
2019 2,360,400 Increase9,4% 3,407 Increase3.3% 19,177 Increase5.4%
2020 709,241 Decrease70.0% 2,132 Decrease37.4% 7,625 Decrease60.2%
2021 1,266,230 Increase78.5% 3,039 Increase42.5% 12,056 Increase58.1%
2022 2,139,191 Increase68.9% 2,635 Decrease13.3% 15,923 Increase32.1%
2023[51] 2,883,378 Increase34.8% 3,585 Increase36% 21,985 Increase38%
2024[52] 2,954,568 Increase2.5%
2025[53] 3,211,419 Increase8.7%

Busiest routes (2022)

City Airport(s) Airline(s) Market Share
Istanbul Istanbul Airport and Sabiha Gökçen Airport Pegasus Airlines, Turkish Airlines 13.1%
Basel Switzerland, Mulhouse France, Freiburg Germany Basel/Mulhouse Airport Wizz Air 6.3%
Vienna Vienna Airport Austrian Airlines 6.2%
Zürich Zurich Airport Chair Airlines, Edelweiss Air 6.2%
Antalya Antalya AnadoluJet, Corendon Airlines, SunExpress 4.2%
Memmingen Memmingen Wizz Air 4%
Dortmund Dortmund Wizz Air 4%
Cologne Cologne/Bonn Wizz Air 3.1%
Source:[54]

Largest airlines (2022)

RankCarrierMarket share
1Wizz Air59,3%
2Turkish Airlines11.0% (incl. AnadoluJet)
3Pegasus Airlines6.7%
4Austrian Airlines6.2%
5Chair Airlines4.9%
Source:[54]

Largest country markets (2022)

RankCountryMarket share
1Germany24%
2Turkey19.1%
3Switzerland14.2%
4Sweden6.9%
5Austria6.2%
Source:[54]

Ground transportation

Taxis to Skopje are available. Private transfer services are also offered by various companies.[55] There is also a bus service (WTransporter) linking the airport and the city.[citation needed]

Incidents and accidents

  • On 24 July 1992, an Antonov 12BK of Volga-Dnepr Airlines crashed at the mountainous Lisec village near Tetovo, on approach to Skopje Airport, after the crew strayed off course while trying to circumnavigate a thunderstorm, because the DME at Skopje Airport was inoperative. All 8 occupants died and the plane was written off.[56]
  • On 5 March 1993, Palair Macedonian Airlines Flight 301, a Fokker 100 bound for Zürich, crashed seconds after takeoff from runway 34. Investigation into the accident determined the cause of the accident to be the failure of the flight crew to have the aircraft deiced before departure. Of the 97 people on board, 83 died.[57]
  • On 12 January 2008, a Mil Mi-17 of the Macedonian Air Force, from Mostar en route to Skopje Airport, crashed on a hill near Katlanovsko Blato in dense fog and burned out. All 11 occupants died and the helicopter was written off.[58]
  • On 13 February 2009, Austrian Airlines Flight OS780, Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 scheduled flight from Skopje to Vienna, failed to retract landing gear after take-off and performed an emergency landing on Skopje Airport.[59][60][61]
  • On 14 November 2011, a private flight Socata TBM700N (TBM850), from Maastricht Aachen Airport to Skopje, hit several treetops and approach light while landing and missed the extended asphalt of the runway and touched down on grass. All five occupants escaped unharmed. The plane received substantial damage and was sent to Daher-Socata at Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées Airport for repairs.[62]
  • On 11 February 2012, Czech Airlines Flight 848, a Boeing 737-55S scheduled flight from Prague to Skopje, made an emergency landing at Skopje, because of reported smoke that came out of the aircraft. Airport firefighters and ambulance were alarmed. The plane had a minor damage and all passengers escaped uninjured.[63]
  • On 6 September 2016, a private Piper PA-34-200T Seneca II crashed near Vetersko, Veles while landing in Skopje, killing all 6 on board. The aircraft was written off.[64]

References

  1. 1 2 “EAD Basic – Error Page”. 19 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  2. ↑ “Macedonia says ready to change its name and end row with Greece”. www.euronews.com. 6 February 2018. Archived from the original on 26 August 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  3. ↑ “Од 53-тата седница на Владата на РМ: Автопатот “Александар Македонски” преименуван во “Пријателство”; новото име на аеродромот “Александар Велики” е “Аеродром Скопје”…” Влада на Република Северна Македонија. Влада на Република Македонија. 6 February 2018. Archived from the original on 27 October 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  4. ↑ “Премиерот Заев: Македонија направи значителен напредок на својот европски пат, ова е заеднички успех на сите граѓани”. Влада на Република Македонија. 6 February 2018. Archived from the original on 6 February 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  5. 1 2 3 Drustvo za Vazdusni Saobracaj A D – Aeroput (1927-1948) at europeanairlines.no
  6. ↑ Грозданов, Дамян Василев. Константин Попанатасов – офицер, войвода и дипломат. Във: Военноисторически сборник, 2006, бр. 3, стр. 3 – 6.
  7. ↑ “Денис Звиздиќ номиниран за претседател на новиот Совет на министри на БиХ”. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  8. ↑ “Macedonia says ready to change its name and end row with Greece”. Reuters. 7 February 2018. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
  9. ↑ Press-room (9 October 2017). “Aegean: 18 νέα δρομολόγια το 2018 – Airnews”. www.airnews.gr. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  10. ↑ skp.airports.com.mk – Timetable retrieved 30 August 2020
  11. ↑ “Aegean Airlines reduces Skopje and Podgorica service”. EX-YU Aviation News. 13 April 2026. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  12. ↑ Schlappig, Ben (16 October 2025). “Air Serbia Launching Belgrade To Toronto Flights As Of May 2026”. One Mile at a Time. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  13. ↑ “AJet, Üsküp uçuşlarına başladı”.
  14. ↑ “AJet launching three new Skopje routes”. 25 May 2025.
  15. ↑ “AJet ile Ankara’dan Balkanlara yeni seferler: Saraybosna ve Üsküp”.
  16. ↑ “AJet adds new Sarajevo and Skopje service”. exyuaviation.com. 5 December 2025. Retrieved 5 December 2025.
  17. ↑ “Austrian Airlines reducing EX-YU operations this summer”. EX-YU Aviation News. 1 March 2026. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  18. ↑ “Chair Airlines to launch Tuzla service, boost Pristina and Skopje”. EX-YU Aviation News. 28 August 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  19. ↑ “Croatia Airlines extends Sarajevo, Skopje summer cuts”. EX-YU Aviation News. 21 May 2026. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  20. ↑ “easyJet to restore Skopje service”. exyuaviation.com. 20 June 2025. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
  21. ↑ “easyJet to end one Skopje route”. exyuaviation.com. 14 June 2026. Retrieved 14 June 2026.
  22. ↑ “Airplane Flying From Zurich to Skopje Hit by Thunder”. Periskopi. 28 May 2024. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  23. ↑ Бојчев, Борјан (30 March 2024). “Seasonal and charter flights from Skopje to Antalya, Bodrum, Hurghada, Enfida, Djerba and Monastir – Free Press”. Слободен печат. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  24. ↑ “15 години ТАВ Македонија “Порта кон иднината. Мост кон светот”“. www.mchamber.org.mk. 24 May 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  25. ↑ “LOT to grow frequencies across most former Yugoslav markets”. exyuaviation.com. 29 December 2024. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  26. ↑ “Norwegian to enter Macedonian market”. 17 November 2022.
  27. 1 2 3 “Pegasus Airlines cuts select regional routes, expands others”. EX-YU Aviation News. 26 April 2026. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  28. ↑ “TRIP REPORT: SunExpress, Skopje – Antalya”. EX-YU Aviation News. 19 July 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  29. ↑ “SunExpress to run year-round Skopje flights”. EX-YU Aviation News. 18 July 2023. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  30. ↑ “TRIP REPORT: Turkish Airlines, Riyadh – Skopje via Istanbul”. EX-YU Aviation News. 2 November 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  31. 1 2 “exyuaviation.com – Wizz Air schedules new and discontinues select Skopje routes”. 18 December 2024.
  32. 1 2 3 4 “Wizz Air launching five new Skopje routes”. 31 July 2025.
  33. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 “Wizz Air discontinues sixth Skopje route”. EX-YU Aviation News. 21 February 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  34. 1 2 3 4 “Wizz Air schedules first two of four new Skopje routes”. EX-YU Aviation News. 18 May 2023. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  35. ↑ “From Oslo to Palermo: Wizz Air’s major expansion at Bratislava”. The Slovak Spectator. 13 August 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  36. ↑ “Wizz Air launching new Skopje and Ohrid routes in 2026”. 3 September 2025.
  37. ↑ “Wizz Air verbindet Köln/Bonn und Skopje”. aerotelegraph.com. 7 August 2025.
  38. 1 2 3 “Wizz Air to base seventh aircraft in Skopje and grow operations”. EX-YU Aviation News. 17 February 2026. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  39. ↑ “Wizz Air to suspend Skopje route”. 21 March 2026.
  40. ↑ “Wizz Air schedules first two of four new Skopje routes”. EX-YU Aviation News. 18 May 2023. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
  41. ↑ Ros, Miquel (14 August 2025). “Wizz Air to open new base in Bratislava, Slovakia – AeroTime”. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  42. ↑ Petrushevska, Dragana (5 February 2024). “Wizz Air to alter frequency on 17 summer flights from Skopje – report | N. Macedonia Investments News | SeeNews”. seenews.com. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  43. 1 2 “Wizz Air plans further Skopje base expansion”. EX-YU Aviation News. 3 August 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  44. ↑ ““…adjust its Milan operations, switching from Malpensa to Bergamo…”“.
  45. ↑ “Wizz Air launching new Skopje and Ohrid routes in 2026”. 3 September 2025.
  46. ↑ Lassetter, Jon (4 July 2023). “New Route of the Day (23 June 2023): Norwegian between Oslo OSL and Skopje”. Air Service One. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  47. ↑ “easyJet to end one Skopje route”. EX-YU Aviation News. 14 June 2026. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  48. 1 2 “Wizz Air to launch two new Skopje routes”.
  49. ↑ aviationcargo.dhl.com – Destinations served retrieved 4 September 2022
  50. ↑ “AirportsBase :: Skopje Airport”. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  51. ↑ “Former Yugoslav airports handle 32.5 million passengers in 2023”. ExYu Aviation. 19 January 2024. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
  52. ↑ “Skopje Airport registers record passenger performance”. ExYu Aviation. 17 January 2025. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  53. ↑ “Skopje Airport registers busiest year on record”. ExYu Aviation. 12 January 2026.
  54. 1 2 3 “TAV: 2.4 million passengers traveled through Skopje and Ohrid airports in 2022”.
  55. ↑ “Skopje Airport Private Transfers”. skopjeairport.mk. Retrieved 14 April 2026.
  56. ↑ Ranter, Harro. “ASN Aircraft accident Antonov 12BK CCCP-11342 Skopje Airport (SKP)”. aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  57. ↑ Ranter, Harro. “ASN Aircraft accident Fokker 100 PH-KXL Skopje Airport (SKP)”. aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  58. ↑ Ranter, Harro. “Accident Cessna 172N Skyhawk 100 II Z3-DCV, 28 Aug 2008”. aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  59. ↑ “My Info Agent”. Archived from the original on 24 February 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  60. ↑ “2 Dash 8 emergency landings in Skopje, Macedonia – PPRuNe Forums”. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  61. ↑ “AUA-Maschine musste nach Start in Skopje umkehren”. derStandard.at. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  62. ↑ Ranter, Harro. “Incident Socata TBM700N (TBM850) F-HBGE, 14 Nov 2011”. aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  63. ↑ Ranter, Harro. “Incident Boeing 737-55S OK-XGC, 11 Feb 2012”. aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  64. ↑ Ranter, Harro. “Accident Piper PA-34-200T Seneca II D-GLLW, 06 Sep 2016”. aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 7 February 2018.

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