January 28, 2020 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for new flights to Croatia with updates from Pula and Osijek.

Ex Yu Aviation reports that Croatia Airlines has ended its seasonal service between Pula and Amsterdam, which ran once per week in the summer. The nonstop flight between Pula and Amsterdam originated in Dubrovnik.

The airline announced that it would no longer work on this route this year, though that it would instead boost operations between Zagreb and Amsterdam.  Namely, frequencies on this route will be increased from seven to eight flights per week. 

The added flight will operate on Tuesdays from April 28 to September 29, 2020. 

This move could be due to competition, as last year, easyJet launched a service between Amsterdam and Pula. 

Furthermore, Ex Yu Aviation reports that Eurowings announced that it is ending its seasonal service between Cologne and Osijek this year. However, that it would keep its service between Stuttgart to Osijek.

This news comes after Eurowings announced it would discontinue flights from Berlin and Dusseldorf to Zagreb just before the summer season, in March. The final flight from Berlin and Dusseldorf to Zagreb is scheduled for March 28, 2020.

Eurowings announced back in November that it would maintain six flights per week from Cologne and five from Stuttgart to Zagreb this summer. The low-cost airline will also operate eight return flights from Hamburg this summer, running once per week between July 8 and August 26, 2020.

Recall, last week, Avio Radar reported that the new Danish carrier Great Dane Airlines would fly on a charter line from Denmark to Rijeka. The line will operate this offseason between Copenhagen and Rijeka, on Tuesdays and Thursdays from September 10 to October 15. 

This service is operated by Best Travel tourist agency, and is also the airline's first charter flight to Croatia. The Embraer ERJ-195 will fly on this route. It is also currently the only direct route from Denmark to Rijeka. 

Avio Radar also reported last week that Tunisia’s national carrier Tunisair would again fly on the Zagreb-Monastir charter service, which will operate once a week, on Wednesdays, from May. 27 to October 7, 2020. The line was last in service in 2014, and will currently be the only direct line from Croatia to any destination in Tunisia. An Airbus A320 aircraft will operate on this line.

And finally, beginning May 4, 2020, Air France will offer another direct flight from Zagreb to Paris.

In addition to the existing two direct flights, one of which is in cooperation with Croatia Airlines, a total of three flights to Paris are on offer on daily. The new flight allows passengers to depart and return to Paris in one day, but also to board a flight to North America.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.

January 15,  2020 - Ahead of the final stage of the Croatia Airlines privatization process, which is slated for June 2020, the Croatian national carrier confirmed that it would expand its fleet and route network this year. 

Namely, Ex Yu Aviation News reported that the national carrier is currently speaking with Montenegro Airlines about a service between Zagreb and Podgorica, which should run three times per week. Recall, back in 2019, Supervisory Board president Zlatko Mateša said that Croatia Airlines was focused on launching services to Sofia and Podgorica. 

Croatia Airlines will also boost operations on a number of flights this summer, which is confirmed by the larger Airbus A319 aircraft that will service several destinations on select days. This is an upgrade from the wet-leased Air Nostrum Bombardier CRJ1000. Furthermore, Croatia Airlines has said it will again use the 100-seat CRJ1000 jets on selected routes. 

“The future structure of the country’s Public Service Obligation (PSO) flights will also have an impact on Croatia Airlines’ network. A new four-year contract for the upkeep of subsidized domestic flights will come into force this year, with the Croatian government looking to increase funding in order to include more services,” Ex Yu Aviation News added. 

Aegean Airlines and Air Nostrum have submitted non-binding bids for Croatia Airlines thus far. Furthermore, last week, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and Executive Vice President of the European Commission, Margrethe Vestager discussed the government’s efforts to privatize the national carrier. 

In 2019, the Croatian government granted Croatia Airlines EUER 33.7 million. Just over 20 million of this amount will be available this year, that is, only if Croatia Airlines successfully sells or recapitalizes the airline by the middle of 2020, Ex Yu Aviation News added. 

The European Commission has said it was in touch with Croatian authorities and was monitoring developments regarding this process. 

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

What follows is a review of events in Croatian politics in 2019, as reported by TCN. If you would like to refresh your memory about the events which has led us here, read the reviews for the three previous years (2016, 2017, 2018).

The year started with a high-profile failure by the government. Months after it was announced that Croatia would buy used Israeli F-16 fighter planes, the US government vetoed the sale and the whole project fell through. Despite earlier warnings from experts that the deal was in question, ministers continued to claim that everything was alight. However, after a meeting between high-ranking officials from the United States and Israel, the truth was revealed. Ministers lost their nerves and the government launched an immediate investigation, which expectedly ended without any real results, and also announced that it would re-start the process. To show its level of seriousness, it even established a commission! Twelve months later, the process of deciding which aircraft to buy still hasn't move any further on and is not expected to end for at least another year.

The migrant crisis continued to be in the news this year. The inflow of migrants over the borders with Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia increased somewhat, together with media coverage about alleged brutality of Croatian police and illegal pushbacks of migrants to Bosnia. The authorities were quick to deny everything, but the sheer number of documented cases makes it apparent that at least some of the allegations are founded.

Efforts to limit media freedoms continued this year and some reporters were even briefly arrested. Journalists, NGOs and international organisations stood up to these attempts, but the final score is still unknown.

Repression continued in other ways as well, with courts ruling that peaceful protesters should go to prison, Croatia's human rights situation being criticised from abroad, ethnically-motivated assaults (several of them) taking place, ombudswomen’s warnings not being heard, journalists receiving instructions from the president on what to do, and diplomats spreading hate...

Historical revisionism was in full force once again this year. As a result, representatives of Jews, Serbs and anti-fascist organisations once again boycotted the government’s annual commemoration at the site of the Jasenovac concentration camp.

European elections were held in May (with even Pamela Anderson giving recommendations to Croatian voters). While the ruling HDZ party had high hopes earlier in the year (and was supported by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who attended one of its rather controversial rallies in Zagreb), the actual results were much tighter and were interpreted by everyone as a success for the opposition (particularly SDP) and a disappointment for the government.

June brought us a few days of excitement when it seemed possible that prime minister Plenković might just succeed in his life-long dream of getting a top EU job. Despite denying he ever wanted such a thing, he was rumoured to be trying to become president of the European Commission (or president of the European Council, or perhaps something else). In the end, he had to return to Croatia empty handed, again denying his alleged attempts.

Unlike Plenković, foreign minister Marija Pejčinović-Burić was more successful in the area of career development. In June, she was elected secretary-general of the Council of Europe. She promptly resigned her post in Croatia and has not been heard about since. Another happy politician is Dubravka Šuica, who has been appointed Croatia’s commissioner in the European Commission.

Mostly good economic news continued. Public debt is at its lowest level in decades, the European Commission concluded that Croatia no longer suffered from excessive economic imbalances, and GDP growth is holding up.

One of the companies which was in the public focus this year was Croatia Airlines, Croatia’s national flag carrier. Its business results were dismal and the search for possible strategic partners was on, but without any real results. The government eventually decided to cover some of the debts, but as the year comes to and end, there is no long-term solution in sight. In the meantime, Zagreb Airport continues to lose airlines using its services.

The construction of an LNG terminal on the island of Krk has apparently started out with strong support from the US government, after many years of delays and announcements. The project is funded from the state budget, since there was no interest among anyone to actually use the terminal. The government claims that there will be interest once the terminal is built, but it would not be the first major government-funded project in Croatia’s history to fail to deliver on its promises.

The construction of Pelješac bridge continues to go at an even faster pace than expected (despite occasional Bosnian protests), mostly thanks to the efforts by the Chinese construction company which won the tender, which also brought about a marked improvement in the relations between Croatia and China. Unfortunately, the construction of the access roads leading up to the bridge has not progressed nearly as fast, with tenders being decided just several months ago. It is quite possible that, when the bridge is built, it will be unusable for a while because there will be no roads leading to it.

Emigration continues amid Croatia's demographic crisis, although somewhat slower than in previous years, probably as a result of the fact that most of those who could have left have already done so. The authorities talk about demographic revival, but nothing much has happened so far.

Political scandals were as numerous as ever. The regional development minister had an accident while driving without a driving license, the agriculture minister forgot to list all his assets on an official statement, the administration minister had his own scandals which were too numerous even to count, and the state assets minister had problems of his own. The Prime minister strongly supported his ministers before some of them resigned, and then he changed his mind and dismissed the rest of them.

The ruling coalition remained stable this year, despite occasional rumours of impending collapse. Ultimatums were rejected, resignations demanded, talks announced, decisions to stay in coalition made, threats given... Just the usual stuff.

As expected, the border dispute between Croatia and Slovenia has not been resolved this year. Slovenia was disappointed with the EU’s decision not to get involved in a dispute between its two members. The chances that this issue will feature in our review for 2020 are quite high.

In October, the European Commission announced that Croatia has fulfilled all the technical conditions to join the Schengen area. However, the final decision will require the unanimous support of all EU member states, and Slovenia does not seem ready to give its approval until the border dispute with Croatia is resolved. 

Another major project is the introduction of euro in Croatia. After a lot of talk, the government has finally sent an official request. The process will certainly take years and opinion is divided as to whether it is a good idea or not.

One of the highlights were the trade union's activities. Earlier in the year, the unions managed to collect enough signatures for a referendum against the government’s pension reform and an increase in the retirement age. The government capitulated and revoked already approved laws (although it previously warned that such a decision would be a disaster).

The other major trade union success was the primary and secondary school strike later in the year. After almost two months, the government capitulated and gave the unions more or less everything they had asked for.

One of the highlights of the next six months will be Croatia’s EU presidency. The government is promoting it as a great success, although all EU member states sooner or later get their chance to hold the rotating presidency. While Croatia's plans are ambitious, their delivery will probably be more modest.

The major event at the end of the year was the first round of Croatia's presidential elections.

While the post is largely ceremonial, elections are held every five years and still manage to occupy public attention for months. Three major candidates launched their bids: incumbent president Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović (officially an independent candidate who in reality is HDZ), former SDP prime minister Zoran Milanović, and singer Miroslav Škoro, who presented himself as a candidate of change, despite having been an MP, a diplomat and a former HDZ member.

The first round was held on December 22. Zoran Milanović won with 29.6% of the vote, followed by Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović with 26.7%. Škoro was third with 24.5%. Milanović and Grabar-Kitarović will take part in the run-off on January 5.

ZAGREB, November 12, 2019 - The national flag carrier Croatia Airlines on Tuesday recorded its forty millionth passenger, Ivanka Čandrlić, who arrived at Zagreb Airport aboard a Croatia Airlines flight from Frankfurt.

"We are very pleased to welcome our forty millionth passenger in the year when we celebrate the company's 30th anniversary. Additionally, symbolic is the fact that the forty millionth passenger was recorded on a flight which was our first international flight in 1992," said Croatia Airlines Management Board chair Jasmin Bajić.

Asked to comment on the future of Croatia Airlines, considering that three scenarios have been mentioned in the media, Bajić said that he believed in the company's future.

"In the third quarter we earned a profit of 41 million kuna. That is the reality of Croatia Airlines - we lose in the wintertime and earn in the summer, when there is competition. We have to find a solution for the wintertime, when we are practically the only airline connecting Croatia with the rest of the world. In the wintertime we have 15 rivals, and in the summertime more than one hundred on this highly competitive aviation market," Bajić said.

Asked if he expected help from the state, Bajić recalled that CA was owned by the state and that currently a process was underway that would result in a change of the ownership structure. But that's up to the owner and not the company itself, he said.

The Večernji List daily reported on Tuesday that the consultants that have been hired to find a strategic partner and define a recapitalisation model for CA are expected to propose a plan to salvage the national airline by the end of the year.

The consultants are currently working on three models which include airports, pension funds and the ACI marina operator.

Sources close to the consultants have said that according to one of the models, a holding company consisting of Croatian airports and Croatia Airlines would be established. Another solution would be for pension insurance funds to take over Croatia Airlines and airports, and the third solution would be for pension insurance funds to take over Croatia Airlines as well as ACI.

More news about Croatia Airlines can be found in the Travel section.

Croatia Airlines is still far from out of the woods when it comes to doing business. Publishing losses and continuing to go downhill, what are the potential rescue options for Croatia's national carrier?

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Josip Bohutinski/VL writes on the 12th of November, 2019, PBZ and DBV consultants engaged in finding a strategic partner and recapitalisation model for Croatia Airlines (CA) should propose a solution by the end of the year. Vecernji list has since discovered that three models are on the table currently.

One of the models, as has since been learned, is to create a holding company for Croatian airports and thus Croatia Airlines. The second solution is for pension funds to take over Croatia Airlines and the airports, and thirdly, for those same pension funds to take over ACI along with the ailing Croatian airline.

All the state-owned airports - Dubrovnik, Split, Zadar, Rijeka, Pula and Osijek - would be included in the holding, except for Zagreb Airport, which is under a concession. These six airports are also included in the model with pension fund options. The state has a 55 percent share in them, while the rest is held by counties and LGUs.

Croatia Airlines is continuing to publish concerning losses, down from 82.9 million kuna last year while all Croatian airports except for Osijek operated at a profit. The total profit of these five airports for 2018 amounts 213.1 million kuna, and the losses published by Osijek Airport amounted to 266.900 kuna.

Poslovni's interlocutors say that companies that would otherwise “feed” each other would merge with the idea of creating a holding because Croatia Airlines makes up a good deal of traffic for those airports.

However, the merger of the airports and Croatia Airlines, as they say, would also be a political issue because in some cities they oppose the idea entirely. Airport profits are also a draw for pension funds.

Pension funds could also be offered another lure - ACI, for the same reason. The Republic of Croatia owns just over 78 percent of its share capital, and generated 30.9 million kuna in profits last year. Although the focus of the consultants' engagement was on other airlines that would take over Croatia Airlines, they said that there was no particular interest in doing so.

Pension funds are interested in investing in airports and ACIs and aren't even attempting to hide that fact. They say their idea of ​​taking over Croatia Airlines and recapitalising the company if it's ''bundled'' into a package with ACI and several airports seems attractive.

The best model for them would be to take over the entire package, but they note that the Croatian national carrier is a ''bottomless pit'', whose survival is impossible without a deep restructuring of the company.

Make sure to follow our dedicated business page for more.

ZAGREB, October 31, 2019 - Croatia Airlines' losses in the first nine months of 2019 stood at 48.4 million kuna, while net profits in the third quarter alone were 41 million kuna, the company said on Thursday.

Despite the profits generated in Q2 and Q3, it was not enough to cover the losses generated in the winter months, the airline said, adding that the operating loss in the first nine months of the year amounted to 30.4 million kuna.

Operating revenues in said period were up 1.4% on the year, while the passenger turnover was the same as in the first nine months of 2018.

In the first nine months of this year, Croatia Airlines transported 1,701,571 passengers, with 2% more passengers flown internationally. Domestically, the number of passengers decreased from the first nine months of 2018.

During this year's summer season, the airline's planes flew to eight Croatian and 30 international destinations in 24 countries. The company operated direct flights between Zagreb and 24 destinations in 22 European countries.

More news about Croatia Airlines can be found in the Business section.

October 16, 2019 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for new flights to Croatia with updates from Rijeka and Croatia Airlines. 

Avio Radar reports that Serbian national carrier Air Serbia has made changes to the upcoming winter flight schedule on the Belgrade-Rijeka route. As announced, this line will remain in service throughout the winter with two flights per week. The winter timetable will be in effect from October 27, 2019, to March 28, 2020. 

Instead of running on Tuesdays and Fridays as it did in the summer flight schedule, this service will run on Mondays and Thursdays throughout winter. This line will not operate in the middle of the day as it did this summer, but on Mondays in the evening and Thursdays in the morning. An ATR-72 aircraft will fly on this line. 

Furthermore, Avio Radar reports that British carrier TUI Airways has increased capacity in their post-season route from London (Gatwick) to Rijeka. Specifically, in October, the larger Boeing 757-200 aircraft has run on this line, instead of the smaller Boeing 737-800, with three arrivals on Thursdays from October 3 to 17. 

TUI Airways’ aircraft will finally run on this line. Namely, since the route launched in May, the aircraft has been leased from other airlines, mostly the Boeing 737-800 from Norwegian Air Shuttle. 

The Boeing 757-200 aircraft often arrives on the TUI Airways route to Dubrovnik and Pula. TUI Airways has only 12 Boeing 757-200 aircraft in its fleet. 

Croatia Airlines has also announced some small changes to its flight schedule this year. 

Recall, Croatia will assume the Presidency of the Council of the European Union from January 1, 2020. With that said, Ex Yu Aviation reported last month that the national carrier would add one flight per week between Brussels and Zagreb, totaling to 12 per week. Furthermore, the seasonal service between Zagreb and Dublin will work until January 26, 2020, while its operations between Zagreb and Lisbon will end at the end of October. 

Croatia Airlines will maintain the same winter operations for other Croatian cities this year, which include flights from Split to Frankfurt, Munich and Rome, Dubrovnik to Frankfurt, and Rijeka to Munich. Croatia Airlines has also announced no changes to its winter operations between Croatian locations. 

Recall, Croatia Airlines is currently undergoing a privatization process, which the Croatian Minister for Sea, Transport and Infrastructure, Oleg Butković, previously said should be completed by the end of the year. “I believe we will deliver within the set timeframe,” the Minister said. Privredna banka Zagreb (PBZ) and Germany's DVB Bank are advising the airline in the process.

While the national carrier projects a 5% increase in passenger traffic by the end of 2019, there are no plans to make any significant changes to its services until the privatization process is complete. 

Ex Yu Aviation adds that Croatia Airlines even dropped its plans to extend the wet-lease for one of Air Nostrum's Bombardier CRJ1000 jets into the winter months, which would have lengthened some of its seasonal routes. Croatia Airlines currently maintains twelve routes from Zagreb during the summer.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page. 

ZAGREB, September 26, 2019 - Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Zdravko Marić on Thursday said that the decision to bail out the national flag carrier Croatia Airlines was not just economic but that there were economic grounds for it because of the domestic air carrier's importance for tourism.

Asked why the government was bailing out Croatia Airlines with state budget funds, given that Slovenia's Adria Airways and the British Thomas Cook tour operator cannot count on that sort of support, Marić said that that was a "legitimate question that requires a responsible approach."

"I am not happy or satisfied when situations like this occur because until then no one asks too much nor analyses the situation until it occurs, and then it is usually the eleventh hour or even past that," he said.

Croatia Airlines has a big role in tourism and connecting Croatia with the world, Marić said, adding that the company and Croatia's airports have big potential.

Asked whether the airline's bailout was just an economic issue or a political one as well, Marić said that when a bailout occurs it can never exclusively be just for economic reasons, but in this case the economic criteria go in favour of preserving the national flag carrier.

We cannot, however, ignore the fact that recently there have been several challenging situations for airlines, he added.

The Croatian government today approved a payment of 100 million kuna from budget reserves to Croatia Airlines as the first instalment of a 250 million kuna grant in an effort to pave the way for the airline's recapitalisation by stabilising business.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said that he expects the company to consolidate so that it can prepare for changes, "keeping account of new partnerships that are essential."

More news about Croatia Airlines can be found in the Business section.

ZAGREB, September 19, 2019 - The government on Thursday made the decision paving the way for recapitalisation of the national flag carrier, Croatia Airlines (CA) whereby the cabinet okayed a grant in the amount of 250 million kuna to stabilise the airline's business ahead of the recapitalisation procedure.

The amount was determined based on an analysis of the shortage in financial resources and in line with a plan prepared by the company and approved by the Ministry of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure.

The grant will be paid in two instalments with at least 100 million kuna being paid in 2019 and the remainder in 2020.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković explained that the grant will stabilise the airline's business and prevent several negative impacts to the economy which would be felt the most in the air traffic and tourism sector while the repercussions could indirectly spread to other economic branches.

Plenković underscored that the government considers that Croatia needs a national flag carrier for the purpose of developing trade and the economy, particularly tourism as well as connecting Croatian regions.

He underscores that during its 30-year history, CA has contributed significantly to Croatia's recognition in the world.

Based on the forecast of money flows in the next 24 months, CA established that finances would be insufficient for certain repairs and overhauls estimated at 71 million kuna, for due debts to domestic suppliers in the amount of 68 million kuna, for essential investments over the next 12 months amounting to 60 million kuna and to settle loan repayments of 26.3 million kuna.

The government stated that the funds are required to enable the airline's undisturbed regular business and to avoid inevitable repercussions on Croatia's economy, particularly in tourism which would be several times more than the amount planned for the injection of fresh capital and the future recapitalisation procedure.

A model for the airline's recapitalisation is expected to be prepared and presented to the government no later than 31 December so that the relevant procedure can be launched by 1 June 2020 in an open procedure enabling the participation of private investors.

More news about Croatian Airlines can be found in the Business section.

September 18, 2019 - Croatia Airlines, Croatia's national air carrier, and a Star Alliance member, celebrated its 30th anniversary in Zagreb

T.portal reports that at the commemorative ceremony, held at the company's technical center at Zagreb Airport, was attended by Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, envoy of the President of the Republic of Croatia and Minister of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure Oleg Butkovic, senior political representatives, Star Alliance Executive Director Jeffrey Goh, international representatives of airlines and organizations, many business partners of the company from Croatia and abroad, and employees of the company headed by CEO Jasmin Bajic.

Prime Minister Plenkovic addressed the many guests, announcing a financial injection for the national air carrier. "On Thursday, the Government will decide to recapitalize Croatia Airlines," Plenkovic said, but did not specify the details. 

In his address to the attendees, the head of Croatia Airlines recalled that the history of the Croatia Airlines began on August 7, 1989, as Zagreb Airlines d.d. (Zagal), an air transport company. Zagal started operations in December of the same year providing postal services, and on July 23, 1990, changed its name to Croatia Airlines d.d., becoming the national airline for the transportation of passengers, goods, and mail.

Passenger transport began on May 5, 1991, when the first domestic flight on the Zagreb - Split route was made using the rented MD-82 aircraft. A year later, on April 5, 1992, the company also made its first international flight (Zagreb - Frankfurt), which began connecting Croatia with Europe and the world.

"Thanks to the expertise and diligence of our employees, we have achieved many business successes over the past thirty years, while continuously expanding our worldwide market presence," said Jasmin Bajic, CEO of Croatia Airlines, adding: "We are proud that travelers recognize us for their flight safety, professional staff and quality of service, and that we have been creating memories for three decades now.”

In the 30 years, Croatia Airlines has grown into a mid-sized airline in Europe, during which time it became a member of major aviation associations such as the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and Star Alliance, the world's largest global airline alliance.

As a national air carrier, the company makes an essential contribution to the development of Croatian tourism as it enables the year-round connectivity of Croatian destinations and Croatia with the world. Almost one-third of all tourists come to Croatia using Croatia Airlines aircraft annually, and the company is the fifth largest exporter in the Republic of Croatia.

“I take this opportunity to congratulate Croatia Airlines on its 30th anniversary, but also, from the bottom of my heart, thank them for 15 years of loyalty to the Star Alliance. Croatia Airlines has made Star Alliance an important presence in Southeastern Europe and has made a significant contribution to the implementation of joint initiatives to improve the customer experience, and we look forward to an even longer collaboration in the future,” said Jeffrey Goh of Star Alliance.

Leading Croatian fashion and textile company Varteks, with the support of Croatia Airlines, designed a special gift for the birthday celebration. Thus, the Croatian fashion giant created a proposal for the future uniforms of the pilots and cabin crew, which were presented at the birthday celebration. Vartek’s vision of the national airline's uniforms was worn by company staff, who, for this occasion, jumped into the role of models and walked the catwalk.

Since its first commercial flight to date, Croatia Airlines has achieved more than 600,000 flights and carried nearly 40,000,000 passengers.

This season, Croatia Airlines planes will fly directly to 38 destinations, 30 of which are international and eight domestic, connecting Croatia with 24 European countries.

The Croatia Airlines fleet consists of twelve aircraft: four A319 Airbuses, two Airbus 320s, and six Dash 8-Q400 turboprops.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.