On 25 June 2025 I finally caught this special Hainan Airlines B787-9 in Vienna, promoting IHG Hotels and Resorts, it successfuly escaped me for more than a year. It arrived to Vienna already on the second flight, however unexpectedly requested and was assigned the other runway. Then it came in bad weather. Then it came exactly when I was in Japan. It also visited Budapest several times, for example 1 day after I was there and again two days ago, when I was away again in Rome. It finally went well today... :-)
Not only at Bratislava, but also at several Czech airports, the new addition of this summer´s charter season are the flights of Electra Airways from Bourgas, which usually operate with too anonymous looking B737-400s of 4 Airways.
For the King of Spain departure from Bratislava on 11 June 2025 finally everything went right, the sun was shining and also the runway was the "correct" one.
This aircraft was one of those so-called enchanted for me. First it landed on the northern runway at Munich despite coming from the south and afterwards taxiing through the whole airport to the cargo area in the southwest. And then, during my numerous Budapest visits, it either did not fly when I was there, or it operated in absolutely inconvenient times. Only now, when I already have almost everything that operates to Budapest regularly, I decided to go solely for it to finally catch it.
Air Europa aircraft visit Bratislava quite often on flights for the Spanish Armed Forces, the today´s flight was operated by B787-8 in non-standard colours, which at least does not operate completely all white anymore.
The King of Spain Felipe VI. came for a visit to Slovakia today. Unfortunately 15 seconds were missing for the sun to shine also on a side-on shot of his A310-300.
US soldiers were transported today from Bratislava by this National Airlines A330-200, unfortunately with delay and with sky slightly polluted from the Canadian wildfires.
Boeing 777-200 of Eastern Airlines transported US soldiers from McGuire Air Force Base to Bratislava today. The sun did not shine too much again, however due to its high position at the arrival time it was not that important.
After a long time this classic IL-76TD with Solovyev D-30KP engines landed in Bratislava, it can operate into the EU only with special permission. Unfortunately, the sun did not care again, it shone in Austria, shone in Hungary, only over Bratislava there was a cloud layer... :-(
Fleet Air International operates wide fleet of cargo ATR-72s and ATR-42s and majority of them quickly resprayed into their white "colours". However this ATR-72F, which served before with Hawaiian Airlines subsidiary Ohana, was retained in its attractive original livery. But I did not want to risk it, so I made a trip on Saturday evening to 90 kms distant Györ to photograph it.
The President of India Droupadi Murmu arrived for a visit to Slovakia, however as her B777-300 is not able to land at Bratislava, Vienna Airport was used for arrival and departure.
A very rare visitor premiered today at Bratislava, Boeing 767-300 freighter of Cypriot operator Euroavia Airlines. It arrived ferry from Athens during the night and in the evening it shall transport cargo to Chad.
Thanks to a delay on a cargo charter flight Helsinki-Bratislava last night this B737-800 of West Air Sweden had to overnight at Bratislava due to crew duty time limitations and departed to Madrid only today late afternoon.
B737-800 of a sister company Mavi Gök Airlines appeared today at Bratislava on a regular charter flight of SkyLine Express Airlines from Hurghada. By the way, this aircraft has been repainted in 2024 from its previous Mango colours at Bratislava.
