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On Wednesday, commercial flight corridors between Kosovo and Albania were opened following an extensive process facilitated by NATO, which is responsible for airspace security over Kosovo. The agreement with Albania to utilize its airspace corridor was reached in 2020.
During a ceremony marking the opening of the air corridors, Kosovo's Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, stated that this is a step bringing Kosovo closer to the normalization of its lower airspace.
"The reduction in flight time translates into a significant decrease in fuel consumption, thereby minimizing carbon dioxide emissions. This is in line with our commitment to environmental sustainability and the global fight against climate change," Prime Minister Kurti remarked, emphasizing that this shortens flight times by 8 to 12 minutes.
Since the end of the war, flights to and from Pristina International Airport have only been conducted through the airspace corridor connecting Kosovo to North Macedonia.
NATO announced in a statement that the opening of new air corridors will facilitate flights to and from Pristina, and "this development is the result of efforts made within a NATO-led process aimed at the normalization of civil aviation in the Western Balkans."
German Ambassador to Kosovo, Jorn Rohde, stated that the opening of new air routes for Kosovo was achieved after 15 months of teamwork with the authorities of Kosovo and Albania, along with the assistance of NATO's mission in Kosovo. According to him, due to the longer flight routes, planes have consumed more fuel, contributing to environmental pollution.
The German ambassador mentioned that efforts will continue to open air corridors connecting Kosovo to Montenegro.
In April of last year, the then acting Prime Minister of Montenegro, Dritan Abazović, and Kosovo's Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, signed an air traffic agreement to open the way for the use of air corridors between Kosovo and Montenegro for civil aviation.
Prime Minister Kurti expressed confidence that the opening of corridors with Montenegro will be implemented during this year, an additional development in normalizing air traffic in the region.a