14 March 2022 - PM Andrej Plenković said on Monday the unmanned aerial vehicle that had flown in from Ukraine and crashed in Zagreb last Thursday carried explosive, a sort of bomb, and the ongoing investigation was aimed at establishing who had launched the drone and how, and if it had been a mistake, sabotage or plan.

Speaking to reporters after a session of his HDZ party leadership, Plenković thus corroborated claims previously presented by Defence Minister Mario Banožić.

"We held a meeting today with all the relevant bodies that are together investigating what happened. We have obtained preliminary information on the type of the military drone in question. For the sake of informing the public, I want to say that what Minister Banožić has said is true, the drone carried explosive, a sort of bomb. The investigation will determine the exact type."

Plenković stressed that "the information published so far by numerous experts is wrong."

"What is correct is that the drone carried explosive. The good thing is that there were no serious consequences, there were no casualties," he said.

The ongoing investigation is aimed at determining who had launched the drone towards Croatia and how, he said.

"Was it a mistake, sabotage or plan? We do not have answers to those questions and we are looking for them together with our partners and allies, with the other countries over whose territory the drone flew," the PM said. 

The drone, a Soviet-made Tupolev Tu-141 Strizh, crashed near a student dorm in the Jarun district of southwest Zagreb shortly after 11 pm on Thursday, damaging about 40 cars in a nearby car park. No one was hurt.

It came from Ukraine, flying over Romania and Hungary, both NATO members, at a speed of 700 km/h at an altitude of 1,300 m, before entering Croatia's air space and crashing down in Zagreb.

ZAGREB, June 24, 2019 - The Croatian Civil Aviation Agency (HACZ) has in the last five years recorded a steady increase in the number of applications for registration of operators of unmanned aerial vehicles known as drones, and there were about 2,200 such aircraft registered at the start of June.

A marked increase was first recorded in 2016 when 299 drone operators were registered, up from 99 in 2015 when the HACZ started keeping such records. The trend continued in 2017 and 2018 when their number rose to 402 and 830 respectively. From the beginning of this year until June 5, 499 new operators were registered.

The HACZ does not have information on how many drones are in the air monthly or in which areas of the country they fly the most. It told Hina that such information should be requested from Croatian Air Traffic Control.

The agency says that drones are mostly used for aerial photography, land surveying and photogrammetry, and that applications for registration are increasingly filed by private individuals.

Early this month the HACZ launched an application allowing drone operators, both Croatian and foreign, to register online through the e-Citizens platform.

More news about drones in Croatia can be found in the Lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, August 19, 2018 - A drone race will be held in Budaševo near Sisak on August 25-26 with over 30 pilots from Croatia and abroad participating.

ZAGREB, May 13 (Hina) - The two-day Osijek Drone Expo began in the biggest eastern Croatian city on Saturday, and the programme of this first fair of unmanned aerial vehicles in Croatia includes a drone race cup.

Croatia is full of hidden gems and stunning landscapes, such as Zavrtnica cove near Senj.

Drone flying, like everything else in Croatia, is strictly regulated.

A dynamic young company discovering Medjimurje by drone.