September 14, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as British Airways cancels Zagreb in October, TAP Portugal returns to the capital in 2021, and Lufthansa operates 14 fewer flights than in August.

Croatian Aviation reports that British Airways has made changes to its flight schedule for October, and there was a further reduction on the London Heathrow - Zagreb line.

As announced earlier, British Airways operated its last flight on the London-Zagreb route on September 6 and withdrew all flights until the end of this month. Until a few days ago, the company again offered daily flights on this route from October 1, though passengers were advised to wait to purchase tickets on these flights because they could be canceled, which has now happened.

British Airways has canceled all flights until the end of October on this route, and the company will not operate to Zagreb for the rest of this year's summer flight schedule.

However, a change has been made that leaves the possibility of returning to the winter flight schedule. Namely, from Sunday, October 25, the company offers direct flights on the London Heathrow-Zagreb line four times a week, every Tuesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Flights on Tuesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays are in the afternoon, while the flight on Fridays is announced in the morning. A320 aircraft have been announced on the route.

Regular aircraft traffic on this route will depend solely on the booking status and the yield itself. British Airways offers return tickets on this route from the end of October for less than 700 kuna, and just a year ago, it was almost impossible to find a direct flight between Zagreb and London for such an amount.

Once again, the company failed to achieve satisfactory business results on this line in September. The question arises about how this will then be possible in the winter flight schedule when demand is significantly weaker than the summer months. Thus, further flight cancellations on this route and the complete withdrawal of British Airways from Zagreb by the spring of next year is possible.

Furthermore, Croatian Aviation reports that the Portuguese national airline TAP has announced its flight schedule for the 2021 summer season. The Lisbon - Zagreb line is being re-introduced!

Namely, TAP Portugal has announced its new routes for next year's summer flight schedule, and Zagreb is among several destinations. The company already operated regularly on the line Lisbon - Zagreb, but it was discontinued in March 2016.

Flights on the line Lisbon - Zagreb have been announced since the beginning of the summer flight schedule, on March 28, 2021, and will operate three times a week, every Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. Tickets are already on sale on the airline's website.

Departure from Lisbon is planned for 8 am, with arrival in Zagreb 2 hours later. A319 and A320 aircraft with a capacity of 144 and 174 seats, respectively, have been announced on the route.

Croatia Airlines operates seasonally on this route, but this year, due to the pandemic's impact, the route was not in operation. TAP Portugal is the first airline to announce a new route to Zagreb Airport for next year's summer flight schedule.

Finally, Croatian Aviation reports that German Lufthansa has reduced traffic to four Croatian airports, and the same number of flights was retained only to Zagreb. We bring you the current flight schedule for September.

Lufthansa will continue to operate to five Croatian destinations until the end of September; Zagreb, Pula, Zadar, Split, and Dubrovnik, but certain departures were canceled on almost all routes. Compared to August, the company will have 14 fewer flights a week to Croatia.

The Frankfurt - Dubrovnik line will operate twice a week until the end of September, on Saturdays and Sundays, one flight less per week than August (flight canceled on Wednesdays).

The Munich - Dubrovnik line operates 4 times a week, on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. The flight was canceled on Saturday.

The Frankfurt - Split line operates 3 times a week, every Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday. The flight was canceled on Friday.

The Munich - Split line will operate 4 times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays, until the end of September, while the flight is canceled on Fridays.

The Frankfurt - Pula line operates 2 times a week, on Fridays and Saturdays. The flight was canceled on Monday.

The Munich - Pula line operates once a week, on Saturdays. The flight was canceled on Sunday.

The Frankfurt - Zadar line operates twice a week, on Saturdays and Sundays. The flight was canceled on Wednesday.

The Munich - Zadar line operates once a week, on Saturdays. The company retains the same number of flights as in August on this route.

The Munich - Zagreb line operates 5 times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Lufthansa kept the same number of flights on this route as in August.

The Frankfurt - Zagreb line is not in operation, and the company does not plan to launch it until the spring of next year. On this route, flights are operated by Croatia Airlines, and Lufthansa has them on sale thanks to a code-share agreement between the two companies.

The Frankfurt - Zadar line operates twice a week, on Saturdays and Sundays. The flight was canceled on Wednesday.

The Munich - Zadar line operates once a week, on Saturdays. The company retains the same number of flights as in August on this route.

Until the end of September, Lufthansa will offer 48 flights a week on its nine routes to Croatia, or 14 fewer flights than in August this year. The company has not yet finalized its flight schedule for October, but it is to be expected that there will be further cancellations on the routes to the mentioned airports.

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Thursday, 10 September 2020 – On this day in 1976, the explosion above Vrbovec was not just Croatia's worst airplane crash, it was the deadliest mid-air collision the world had ever seen

That summer there had been a heatwave. Although European holidays were not as standard as they are now, some of the 54 passengers on board the British Airways Hawker Siddeley Trident from London were no doubt looking forward to extending their good summer on this trip south to Istanbul. For the passengers of the other plane, 108 mostly-German tourists en route from Split to Bonn Cologne on a Douglas DC-9, this was the end of their vacation. They were headed home after rest on the Dalmatian coast. But, neither set of passengers would that day reach their destination.

The explosion above Vrbovec, just north-east of Zagreb on Thursday 10 September 1976 was not just Croatia's worst airplane crash, at the time it was the deadliest mid-air collision the world had ever seen. All 176 people aboard both aircraft were killed.

English language news footage taken in the aftermath of Croatia's worst airplane crash

The fault of the collision was a severely overworked, ill-equipped and understaffed Zagreb air traffic control. The ineffectiveness of their procedures that day had harrowing consequences.

In 1976, Vrbovec was known for its industry, its surroundings rich in agriculture. At the time of the crash – around 11.15am in Croatia - those working in the fields would have been thinking about coming inside to escape the glare of the sun and take lunch. The skies above them exploded before they could take that journey. Debris rained down over an area of 10 square kilometres.


Plane wreckage, photographed by the Croatian media shortly after Croatia's worst airplane crash

Over 1000 locals were engaged in the fruitless search for the victims. All were dead. Small comfort could later be taken from learning that most had died instantly, at the moment the planes depressurized. The last five metres of the DC-9's left wing had cut through the Trident's cockpit and the front of the passenger compartment.


The British Airways plane involved in Croatia's worst airplane crash © Mike McBey

Vrbovec was soon the destination for hundreds of journalists from around the world, not least Britain and Germany. News of Croatia's worst airplane crash had been reported within an hour of the incident. German families waited nervously at Bonn Cologne airport for relatives who would never come. The story had reached Germany. Their plane had not arrived. It took airport authorities another four hours to confirm that, sadly, it never would.

Near the town of Vrbovac today, in a countryside that remains very similar to that searched for survivors 44 years ago, a lasting memorial stands surrounded by trees, a permanent reminder of Croatia's worst airplane crash.


A memorial to some of the victims, at Zagreb's Mirogoj © SpeedyGonsales

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September 10, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Condor ends traffic to Split Airport. 

Croatian Aviation reports that Condor, a German leisure airline, will finish operating in September to its only destination in Croatia this summer season - Split Airport. The Frankfurt-Split route has two flights announced in October, but the probability of their realization is quite small.

On June 12, the company launched traffic to Split with three international routes, from Frankfurt, Dusseldorf and Hanover, available with two flights a week.

Before the outbreak of the pandemic, this leisure airline regularly flew from German airports to Rijeka, Zadar, Split and Dubrovnik, but in this year's summer flight schedule, Condor flew only to Split Airport.

The company made its last flight on the Hannover - Split route on Sunday, August 30, and it is no longer on offer in this year's summer flight schedule.

The Split - Dusseldorf route operated twice a week, on Fridays and Sundays, and the last flight on this route was announced for Sunday, September 13.

In June, Condor first launched the Split-Frankfurt route, which is currently announced throughout September. The company offers direct flights on this route every Friday and Sunday, until September 27. A320 aircraft were used on all routes to Croatia, while the Frankfurt-Split route was an exception, and occasionally used larger aircraft (A321, B757).

On the route from Frankfurt, the company also has two direct flights on sale in October (October 11 and October 25), but the probability that these flights will be canceled is high.

Condor has announced its preliminary flight schedule for next summer’s season and it has announced the three mentioned routes to Split Airport. No resumption of traffic to other airports in Croatia has been announced yet.

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September 9, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Smartwings stops Prague-Split, and Edelweiss alters its flight schedule to Split, Dubrovnik, and Pula. 

Croatian Aviation reports that the Czech airline Smartwings will soon complete regular traffic on the Prague-Split route. It was one of only two lines between the Czech capital and Croatia this summer season.

Smartwings relatively quickly resumed traffic to Split, connecting it daily to Prague with B737-800 aircraft. It was also the only direct line between Prague and Split this summer season.

This year, Croatia Airlines did not resume traffic on its seasonal route Zagreb - Prague due to reduced demand caused by the global pandemic, while Czech Airlines previously suspended traffic to all Croatian destinations.

Last summer, Smartwings regularly flew to Dubrovnik, but this year the line was not in traffic, as were numerous charter flights to Split.

The company will operate daily on the Prague - Split route this week, while flights will be announced on Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday next week. Smartwings will make its last flight this summer to Split on Sunday, September 20, thus concluding operations for this year towards the Croatian market.

The option of a direct flight between Prague and Croatia remains with the low-cost airline Ryanair.

Furthermore, Croatian Aviation reports that Edelweiss Air, a Swiss leisure airline and subsidiary of Swiss, continues to operate to Croatia in September, despite restrictions. The line to Dubrovnik will be canceled earlier than originally planned.

The only Swiss line to Croatia this year, between Geneva and Dubrovnik, stopped operating at the end of August. The line was in traffic only once a week, every Saturday.

The partner company Edelweiss Air operates on the lines from Zurich to Croatia. The company will have three lines by mid-September, to Dubrovnik, Split, and Pula.

The Zurich - Dubrovnik line is open once a week, every Friday. That will be the case until September 18, when it will make its last flight on this route this summer season.

The Zurich - Split line will be in operation throughout September, twice a week, every Saturday and Sunday. From September 27, the company will keep one flight a week, every Saturday.

The Zurich - Pula line also remains in operation throughout September, once a week, on Saturdays. On all routes to Croatia, Edelweiss uses an A320 aircraft.

In September, Croatia Airlines offers direct flights to Zurich from Zagreb, Split and Dubrovnik. A number of departures on these lines were canceled through the first half of September.

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September 7, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Wizz Air stops traffic on three lines to Split, and British Airways makes its last rotation to Zagreb and Pula from Heathrow.

Croatian Aviation reports that Hungarian Wizz Air has made some changes in its flight schedule for September as there will be a disruption of traffic on three routes to Split Airport.

This well-known low-cost company operates only to Split Airport, seasonally, in the summer flight schedule. Despite the pandemic, Wizz Air resumed traffic from Split to four destinations, one more than the previous year. This year, the company introduced a completely new line - Dortmund - Split.

In addition to Dortmund, Wizz Air offers direct flights from Split to London (Luton Airport), Warsaw, and Katowice. These three lines will stop operating this month.

The Split - Warsaw line is currently operating three times a week, every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. The last flight on this line has been announced for Saturday, September 19.

The Split - Katowice line also operates three times a week, on the same days as the line from Warsaw, and the last flight is announced for Saturday, September 19.

The Split - London Luton line operates twice a week, every Monday and Friday. This line will be in traffic for slightly longer. The last flight will be on Monday, September 28. 

A completely new route, Split - Dortmund, is announced as a year-round line, and Wizz Air offers flights through the entire winter flight schedule three times a week, every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Regular traffic in the winter months will depend on demand and restrictive measures.

Furthermore, British Airways made its last rotation on the London Heathrow - Zagreb - London Heathrow yesterday and finished traffic to Pula Airport. 

As was announced on August 25, British Airways decided to stop traffic on three of its four routes from London (Heathrow Airport) to Croatia.

The London Heathrow - Pula line has been in operation since August 1 with two flights a week (Tuesdays and Saturdays). British Airways planned to keep this route active throughout September, but the reintroduction of restrictions by the UK on passengers from Croatia forced the company to suspend traffic earlier. On Saturday, September 5, the last flight was made after only a month of regular operations, with a nine-year-old A320 aircraft (reg. Marked G-EUYL). British Airways plans to return to Pula in the spring of next year.

The London Heathrow - Zagreb line operated 3 times a week in July and 5 times a week in August. The company completely suspended sales on this line three weeks ago, and as of Monday, September 7, there are no more direct flights.

British Airways has been offering flights on the London - Zagreb route from October 1, with as many as 11 flights available per week. The fact is that this is a British Airways flight schedule planned even before the outbreak of the pandemic, and the company has not considered those flights so far. Operational changes (cancellations) for flights from October 1 can be expected in mid-September, and, certainly, this company will not fly 11 times a week to Zagreb.

If British Airways decided to stop traffic on this line now, in early September, there will likely be no flights either in October or in the other winter months. On the flight from Zagreb, there were 113 passengers (LF 70%).

Croatia Airlines also operates on the London-Zagreb route, which reduced the number of flights in September. 

The London Heathrow - Split line will remain in service until September 26.

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Septemeber 5, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Eurowings reduces flights to Split Airport. 

Croatian Aviation reports that due to the introduction of restrictive measures that apply to all who travel to Germany from Split-Dalmatia, Sibenik-Knin, and Zadar counties (mandatory testing for COVID-19 and self-isolation until the test results are presented), Eurowings has recorded a decline in demand resulting in numerous cancellations on lines to Split Airport.

In mid-August, Eurowings announced its flight schedule to Croatia for September, in which it announced an increase in the number of weekly flights from a number of German cities compared to August.

Due to restrictive measures and the epidemiological situation in Croatia, Eurowings, just like everyone else, is recording a decline in demand on routes to Split, which results in the cancellation of certain departures and a new, reduced flight schedule for September this year. Eurowings was supposed to run 40 operations a week to Split Airport this month, but that will not happen.

You can find the new flight schedule below:

Split - Dusseldorf will operate 3 times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, from September 26 (previously planned 4 flights a week, the flight is canceled on Sundays),

Split - Hamburg will operate twice a week, on Mondays and Sundays, from September 7 (previously planned 4 flights a week, flights are canceled on Tuesdays and Saturdays),

Split - Cologne will operate twice a week, on Thursdays and Saturdays, from September 7 (previously planned 5 flights a week, the flight will be canceled on Tuesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays). Eurowings had two daily flights on this line on Saturdays, leaving one in traffic.

Split - Stuttgart will operate 3 times a week, on Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, from September 7 (previously planned 4 flights a week, the flight is canceled on Sundays),

Split - Hannover continues to operate according to the original plan, once a week, on Saturdays,

Split - Berlin continues to operate according to the original plan, twice a week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays.

Eurowings will have 26 weekly operations to Split in September - as many as 14 flights a week less than originally planned.

In other Croatian airports, there are currently no reductions on Eurowings routes, and traffic is moving according to the flight schedule that was announced earlier. Further cancellations are possible and will depend on restrictions for travelers traveling to Germany from Croatia.

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September 5, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Jet2 cancels all 12 lines to Croatia, namely to Dubrovnik, Split and Pula. 

Croatian Aviation reports that Jet2, a British airline focused on leisure passengers, is suspending traffic on all routes from the UK to Croatia. This is the result of the introduced restrictive measures for travelers coming from Croatia to the United Kingdom, which resulted in a significant drop in demand.

In the first half of July, Jet2 launched as many as 12 international routes to Croatia, from numerous British airports to Pula, Split and Dubrovnik, almost immediately after lifting restrictive measures in the UK. The company returned to the Croatian market, but with a significantly smaller number of routes and weekly flights compared to last summer season, thus adjusting its offer and capacity to current demand.

Jet2 stated the reasons for the cancellation, and in addition to flights to Croatia, the company is also suspending traffic to Spain.

"Due to the global pandemic and reduced demand, as well as due to the measures introduced for travelers coming to the UK from Croatia, we have decided to cancel all flights and travel arrangements for the rest of this summer season. Our last flight from Croatia this year will be on Sunday, September 6, 2020."

This week, the company will operate the last flights to and from Croatia and stop operating on as many as 12 scheduled flights to Dubrovnik, Split, and Pula:

Birmingham - Dubrovnik,

London Stansted - Dubrovnik,

Manchester - Dubrovnik,

Newcastle - Dubrovnik,

Birmingham - Split,

East Midlands - Split,

Leeds - Split,

London Stansted - Split,

Manchester - Split,

Birmingham - Pula,

Leeds - Pula

Manchester - Pula.

After the flights and tourist arrangements for this summer season were completely canceled by the British TUI, Jet2 was the only one that offered British tourists holiday packages in Croatia this summer season. The company achieved an average Load Factor (passenger cabin occupancy) of less than 40% on the lines operating to Croatia, which cannot be considered satisfactory.

Jet2 plans to return to Croatia in the spring of 2021, but this will certainly depend on the pandemic and restrictive measures.

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September 5, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Air Baltic maintains Dubrovnik-Vilnius and likely cancels all other Croatia lines.

Croatian Aviation reports that according to the original plan, Air Baltic, the national carrier of Latvia based in Riga, was supposed to operate on four routes to Croatia in September, but this will not happen. Only one international line remains active.

Air Baltic started regular traffic to Croatia very early, back in June, and was also the first international line after a complete lockdown to Rijeka Airport. The company operates new A220 aircraft on all routes to Croatia.

The Riga - Dubrovnik route has been announced once a week in September, every Monday, but the company has been canceling flights on this route for some time. Currently, flights from September 14 are on sale again, but it is quite certain that they will also be canceled.

The Riga - Split line is also announced once a week through September, every Friday, though this line should see the same fate - the company ran the last flight on this line on August 21, while all flights after that date were canceled. Air Baltic has been offering flights on this route until September 18, but as is the case with the Dubrovnik route, it is obvious that they will not return to Split this year and will cancel the mentioned flights.

On the Riga - Rijeka line, the last flight operated on August 19, though it was originally planned that the last flight would be on September 16. However, in the meantime, all departures have been canceled and the company no longer offers direct flights between the two cities.

The last, fourth Air Baltic line, also a completely new line that started operating this year, Vilnius - Dubrovnik, is the only one that operates regularly, and Air Baltic plans to maintain it until the end of this month (September 25), once a week, every Friday.

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September 4, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia with as Qatar Airways cancels Zagreb once again.

Croatian Aviation reports that Qatar Airways has again canceled flights on the Doha - Zagreb route in the next two weeks, just as it was in July and August this year.

Just a few days after we learned about the percentage of canceled flights on the Doha - Zagreb route, new bad news followed - Qatar Airways has canceled all flights on this route until September 19 this year.

On September 2, the company operated a flight on this route and due to low demand, canceled all planned flights until September 19 this year. The Qatar Airways Doha - Zagreb line primarily serves a large number of tourists from Asia who use it to come to Croatia in the summer season (but also outside it). It is already generally known that there are no passengers from the Asian market this year, and due to its favorable prices and numerous destinations, Qatar was also the choice of many Croatian and Slovenian citizens for trips to distant destinations, but few choose such trips today. 

It is for these reasons that Qatar Airways is unable to achieve a satisfactory charge of its aircraft on this route which ultimately leads to frequent cancellations. As has been stated several times, the companies generally adjust their flight schedule in the period from 2 to 3 weeks in advance, so Qatar Airways did the same, canceling all scheduled flights on this route in the next two weeks.

The question is whether Qatar will return to Zagreb this fall and winter. If in July, August and September they cannot achieve a satisfactory load factor (percentage of occupancy of the passenger cabin), then it is almost certain that this will not be possible in the months ahead, when the average occupancy on the line is already lower than summer months.

If Qatar Airways decides to maintain this route anyway, one thing is for sure - numerous cancellations of individual flights will continue, as has been the case so far. And until when? Until the recovery of the market, which will certainly not happen in the months ahead.

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September 2, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia with updates for Split, Dubrovnik, Zadar, Rijeka and Pula as Ryanair continues to five Croatian destinations this September.

Croatian Aviation reports that Irish low-cost airline Ryanair continues to five Croatian destinations in September: Pula, Rijeka, Zadar, Split and Dubrovnik. We bring you the current flight schedule.

Ryanair will continue to be present at Croatian airports in September, operating on as many as 16 scheduled flights. This is a slightly smaller number of lines compared to July and August, given that certain lines have stopped operating.  

Lines from Pula

Pula - Brussels Charleroi: runs twice a week, on Mondays and Fridays,

Pula - Berlin: continues to operate once a week, on Saturdays,

Pula - London Stansted: runs twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays.

Lines from Rijeka

Rijeka - Frankfurt Hahn: runs once a week, on Saturdays,

Rijeka - London Stansted: runs twice a week, Mondays and Fridays, until 28 September.

Lines from Zadar

Zadar - Brussels Charleroi: runs twice a week, on Thursdays and Saturdays,

Zadar - Prague: runs once a week, on Saturdays,

Zadar - Berlin: runs once a week, on Thursdays, until September 24,

Zadar - Cologne: runs once a week, on Sundays,

Zadar - Dusseldorf Weeze: runs twice a week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays,

Zadar - Karlsruhe / Baden-Baden: runs twice a week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays,

Zadar - Stuttgart: runs once a week, on Sundays, until September 27,

Zadar - Poznan: runs once a week, on Sundays.

Lines from Split

Split - Stuttgart: runs once a week, on Sundays, until September 27,

Split - Dublin: runs twice a week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays.

Line from Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik - Dublin: runs twice a week, on Wednesdays and Sundays.

All of these lines have been announced for October, with the exception of certain lines for which we have given the date of the last available flight in September. Earlier than planned, the company stopped traffic on two lines, from Zadar to Vienna and Milan, and the number of departures on a larger number of lines was reduced due to weak demand. Through September, Ryanair will offer as many as 16 routes to five Croatian airports.

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