April 4, 2022 - Ryanair Rijeka flights were canceled on Sunday without any e-mail notification or other possibilities for passengers at Rijeka Airport. A look into what happened. 

On Sunday, Rijeka Airport announced three Ryanair return flights from Charleroi, London, and Stockholm. However,  only the plane from Stockholm landed and took off from Rijeka airport, and the other two flights were canceled, reports Croatian Aviation.

Due to the strong wind in Rijeka on Sunday morning, flights to London and Brussels were canceled, which in itself would not be news if the problem did not arise in communication between the airline and passengers.

Namely, several passengers who were supposed to travel from Rijeka to Charleroi Airport saw that their flight was canceled. And due to the strong wind at Rijeka Airport, the Ryanair plane landed at Pula Airport instead of Krk.

At 11 am, the plane took off from Pula for Rijeka, where it was supposed to land, pick up passengers for Brussels and, with a two-hour delay, bring them to their destination in Belgium. As the wind did not calm down, the plane flew back to Charleroi without the Rijeka passengers.

About 30 passengers awaited the arrival of the plane at Rijeka Airport, and according to information from the airport, they were informed that, in the worst case, if the plane fails to reach Rijeka, they will be transported by bus to Pula and go to their planned destination from there. In the end, neither happened - Rijeka passengers did not go to Pula, and Ryanair's plane eventually failed to land in Rijeka.

Only a little later, the same story happened with the Ryanair flight between London and Rijeka. Due to the wind, the plane diverted to Pula and then took off from Pula to Stansted Airport without the passengers in Rijeka.

According to EU Regulation 261/2004, in case of flight cancellation due to bad weather conditions, passengers are not entitled to compensation but have the right to care, refund, and be redirected under similar conditions to the earliest flight to the planned destination. As Ryanair's next flight from Rijeka to Charleroi is only on April 7, passengers will probably make their trip from nearby airports, Zagreb and Zadar, from where Ryanair also operates to the airport.

However, the passengers did not receive any notification via e-mail about the flight cancellation and other possibilities, or that an additional flight from Rijeka was mentioned on Monday to transport passengers to their destinations, which was an information error.

As all this happened due to force majeure. Ryanair made the best option for itself as an airline - it canceled flights for which it knows it will not have to pay a fee of 250 euros per passenger and offered passengers the next direct flight, which is a business move. Passengers could still be transported from Rijeka by bus to Pula, from where they would travel to their destinations on the same day with a certain delay, but Ryanair did not do so due to additional costs, and above all not to jeopardize the implementation of its other scheduled flights on Sunday with just those planes.

For more, check out our travel section.

March 30, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as Croatia Airlines and Ryanair offer over 2 million seats in the Zagreb Airport summer flight schedule this year.

Croatian Aviation reports the details of this year's summer flight schedule from Zagreb, the exact number of available seats on all routes (ad-hoc charter and scheduled flights) of the two airlines that offer the largest number of seats and generate the most passengers at Zagreb International Airport.

Namely, Croatian Aviation has listed all the operations of Croatia Airlines and Ryanair on the day announced for this year's summer flight schedule (from March 27 to October 29 this year). 

Croatia Airlines operates on a number of international and domestic routes in this year's summer flight schedule, which Croatian Aviation will analyze in detail by month.

In the mentioned period, the Croatian national airline is planning 559 return flights with A320 aircraft, 1866 return flights with A319 aircraft, and 3139 return flights with DashQ400 aircraft. A total of 1,209,068 seats are currently available from or to Zagreb on all Croatia Airlines flights. 

Ryanair is announcing a slightly smaller number of flights. In the same period, 2219 return flights with A320 aircraft, 104 return flights with B737-800 aircraft, and 51 return flights with 737 MAX 200 aircraft are planned. A total of 858,552 seats are currently available from or to Zagreb on all flights Ryanair.

Croatia Airlines is currently the largest airline at Zagreb Airport in terms of the number of seats, offering 350,516 more seats than the other Ryanair during the mentioned period.

According to current announcements, these two airlines have a total of 2,067,620 seats from and to Zagreb Airport, respectively.

Furthermore, Croatian Aviation reports that Finnair has announced a regular seasonal route between Helsinki and Zagreb which will operate from May to the end of September this year.

After Finnair announced that it would not resume traffic to Ljubljana this summer, due to the negative impact of the war in Ukraine on air traffic in that part of Europe, there were fears that Finnair would cancel the announced route to Zagreb, too. 

However, Croatian Aviation learned that this will not happen. Finnair plans to operate the first flight between Helsinki and Zagreb on May 1 this year, and by the end of September (September 29) to operate a total of 66 return flights between the two cities.

Finnair will operate on this route three times a week, every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday, and for now, only A319 aircraft with a capacity of 144 passengers have been announced. Earlier, Embraer E190 aircraft were also planned for these flights. 

This summer, Finnair will offer a total of 19,008 seats between Helsinki and Zagreb, and will also operate to Dubrovnik and Split.

Finnair will operate to Dubrovnik from April 1, and to Split from April 20 this year.

For more, check out our travel section.

March 21, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as the Ryanair Zadar summer flight schedule is delayed, and several changes have been announced from Zagreb.

Ryanair has changed the summer flight schedule for its two bases in Croatia, reports Croatian Aviation.

The start of traffic on several lines from Zadar has been postponed to June. As for Zagreb's Ryanair base, several routes have received an additional weekly flight, and several lines will operate with a reduced number of flights.

Namely, lines from Zagreb to Brussels Charleroi, Milan Bergamo, Malta, Memmingen, Malmö, Paphos, Rome Fiumicino, and Düsseldorf Weeze have been strengthened with an additional weekly rotation. Also, the number of flights on the new route to Bratislava has been increased from the original two to three flights a week. 

On the other hand, Ryanair will reduce the frequency of flights to Dublin to three-weekly flights, and from the planned initially two-weekly flights to one weekly flight to Corfu.

The summer flight schedule was also revised from the Zadar base. Namely, the starting date for several flights has been postponed.

Below is an overview of all Ryanair flight schedules from Zadar and their start dates.

Lines starting in March:

Zadar - Berlin Brandenburg - Zadar, from March 28, 2022, twice a week (Mondays and Fridays), until the end of October

Zadar - Bremen - Zadar, from March 30, 2022, twice a week (Wednesdays and Saturdays) until the end of October

Zadar - Brussels Charleroi - Zadar, from March 28, 2022, three times a week (Mondays, Tuesdays, and Saturdays) until the end of October

Zadar - Budapest - Zadar, from March 27, 2022, twice a week (Thursdays and Sundays), until the end of October

Zadar - Cologne - Zadar, from March 28, 2022, twice a week (Mondays and Fridays), until the end of October

Zadar - Dublin - Zadar, from March 27, 2022, twice a week (Wednesdays and Sundays), until the end of October

Zadar - Düsseldorf Weeze - Zadar, from March 27, 2022, four times a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays) until the end of October

Zadar - Frankfurt Hahn - Zadar, from March 28, 2022, twice a week (Mondays and Fridays), until the end of October

Zadar - Karlsruhe / Baden-Baden - Zadar, from March 28, 2022, three times a week (Mondays, Tuesdays, and Saturdays) until the end of October

Zadar - London Stansted - Zadar, from March 29, 2022, twice a week through April (Tuesdays and Fridays) and May (Tuesdays and Saturdays), five times a week through June, July, August, and September (Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays), and again twice a week until the end of October (Tuesdays and Saturdays)

Zadar - Marseille - Zadar, from March 27, 2022, twice a week (Thursdays and Sundays), three times a week through May, June, July, August, September, and October (Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays)

Zadar - Memmingen - Zadar, from March 29, 2022, twice a week through April and May (Tuesdays and Saturdays), three times a week through June, July, August, September (Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays), and again twice a week until the end of October (Tuesdays and Saturdays)

Zadar - Newcastle - Zadar, from March 30, 2022, twice a week (Wednesdays and Sundays), until the end of October

Zadar - Paris Beauvais - Zadar, from March 30, 2022, twice a week (Wednesdays and Saturdays), until the end of October

Zadar - Poznan - Zadar, from March 29, 2022, twice a week through April (Tuesdays and Saturdays), four times a week from May to the end of October (Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays)

Zadar - Rome Fiumicino - Zadar, from March 28, 2022, three times a week through April (Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays), four times a week from May to the end of October (Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays)

Zadar - Stockholm Arlanda - Zadar, from March 27, 2022, twice a week (Wednesdays and Sundays), until the end of October

Zadar - Vienna - Zadar, from March 27, 2022, three times a week in April and May (Mondays, Fridays, and Sundays), four times a week in June, July, August, and September (Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays), and again three times a week until the end of October (Mondays, Fridays, and Sundays)

Lines starting in April:

Zadar - Krakow - Zadar, from April 2, 2022, once a week through April (Saturday), three times a week through May (Monday, Friday, and Saturday), four times a week through June, July, August, and September (Monday, Wednesday, Fridays and Saturdays), and again three times a week until the end of October (Mondays, Fridays, and Saturdays)

Lines starting in May:

Zadar - Birmingham - Zadar, from May 4, 2022, twice a week (Wednesdays and Saturdays), until the end of October

Zadar - Bordeaux - Zadar, from May 2, 2022, twice a week (Mondays and Fridays), until the end of October

Zadar - Bucharest - Zadar, from May 4, 2022, twice a week (Wednesdays and Saturdays) until the end of October

Zadar - Gothenburg Landvetter - Zadar, from 3 May 2022, twice a week (Tuesdays and Saturdays), until the end of October

Zadar - Hamburg - Zadar, from May 2, 2022, twice a week (Mondays and Fridays), until the end of October

Zadar - Leeds Bradford - Zadar, from 3 May 2022, twice a week (Tuesdays and Saturdays), until the end of October

Zadar - Pisa - Zadar, from May 4, 2022, twice a week (Wednesdays and Saturdays) until the end of August

Zadar - Prague - Zadar, from May 3, 2022, three times a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays) until the end of October

Zadar - Sofia - Zadar, from May 1, 2022, twice a week (Wednesdays and Sundays) until the end of October

Zadar - Warsaw Modlin - Zadar, from May 1, 2022, twice a week (Thursdays and Sundays), until the end of October

Zadar - Wroclaw - Zadar, from May 2, 2022, three times a week (Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays) until the end of October

Lines starting in June:

Zadar - Aarhus - Zadar, from June 3, 2022, twice a week (Mondays and Fridays), until the end of September

Zadar - Bari - Zadar, from June 2, 2022, twice a week (Thursdays and Sundays), until the end of September

Zadar - Bologna - Zadar, from June 2, 2022, twice a week (Thursdays and Sundays), until the end of September

Zadar - Bournemouth - Zadar, from June 4, 2022, twice a week (Tuesdays and Saturdays), until the end of September

Zadar - Gdansk - Zadar, from June 4, 2022, twice a week (Tuesdays and Saturdays), until the end of September

Zadar - Helsinki - Zadar, from June 3, 2022, twice a week (Mondays and Fridays), until the end of September

Zadar - Liverpool - Zadar, from June 2, 2022, twice a week (Thursdays and Sundays), until the end of September

Zadar - Maastricht - Zadar, from June 3, 2022, twice a week (Mondays and Fridays), until the end of September

Zadar - Manchester - Zadar, from June 4, 2022, twice a week (Tuesdays and Saturdays), until the end of September

Zadar - Milan Bergamo - Zadar, from June 2, 2022, three times a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays) until the end of August

Zadar - Naples - Zadar, from June 3, 2022, twice a week (Mondays and Fridays), until the end of September

Zadar - Nuremberg - Zadar, from June 2, 2022, four times a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays) until the end of October

Zadar - Turin - Zadar, from June 3, 2022, twice a week (Mondays and Fridays), until the end of September

Zadar - Växjö Småland - Zadar, from June 1, 2022, twice a week (Wednesdays and Sundays), until the end of September

The flight schedule is always subject to change.

For more on flights to Croatia and other travel announcements, check out our dedicated travel section.

March 12, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as a new Ryanair Zagreb-Brindisi line has been announced to replace the recently canceled Lviv-Zagreb line.

Irish low-cost airline Ryanair introduces a new route from Zagreb International Airport in just over two weeks! Namely, Ryanair will introduce a regular route between Zagreb and Brindisi on March 27, the airline's fourth route from Zagreb to Italy, reports Croatian Aviation.

The line will be in operation from the beginning of the summer flight schedule, March 27, twice a week, on Wednesdays and Sundays, until the end of October, i.e., October 26, 2022.

A total of 22,320 seats are on sale, and tickets start at 10 euros one way. This is a line that will be in traffic in the afternoon and evening, and an A320 aircraft with a capacity of 180 seats in the passenger cabin has been announced.

The new line will replace the previously announced Lviv-Zagreb line, which was canceled due to the war in Ukraine.

Ryanair announced the Lviv-Zagreb line in mid-January this year and had plans to operate on it from the very beginning of the summer flight schedule - on March 27. Fights were planned twice a week, every Wednesday and Sunday.

The Irish airline closed sales on all routes from Lviv, including the announced route to Zagreb. A total of 22,320 seats were on sale, and Lviv was to be the second city in Ukraine with which Zagreb was to have a direct connection. Ryanair has announced its return to Ukrainian airports as soon as security conditions allow.

In addition to Brindisi, Ryanair from Zagreb operates to Rome Fiumicino, Bergamo, and Naples. Ryanair is also introducing new lines from Zagreb to Bratislava and Corfu this summer. 

“There are some tourist destinations from Zagreb that can be served in the future and that are of interest to us too. We really believe that Zagreb can be attractive all-year-round, not just for families and the diaspora, but for tourists as well, so we want to use all these opportunities in the future," Tadej Notersberg, Director of Operations of Ryanair’s subsidiary Lauda Europe, told EX-YU Aviation last week. 

For more on flights to Croatia and other travel announcements, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

March 10, 2022 - The latest flight news to Croatia as four Ryanair Pula summer flights have been announced, and Brussels Airlines returns to Zadar Airport. 

Irish low-cost airline Ryanair will operate on four international routes from Pula Airport this summer. Namely, these are direct flights to destinations in Austria, Belgium, Poland, and the United Kingdom, reports Croatian Aviation.

The first line to London (Stansted Airport) will run from March 27, twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays. From June 2, the third weekly flight is added, on Tuesdays, with this flight schedule remaining in force until the end of September. Two-weekly flights have been re-announced for October, with the last Ryanair flight to London on October 27. 

B937-800 aircraft with a capacity of 189 seats have been announced to London. A total of 29,862 seats are available between London and Pula on this Ryanair line.

The very next day, March 28, the line for Brussels Charleroi will start operating, with Ryanair announcing three weekly flights, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, until October 28. B737-800 aircraft have also been announced on this route, with a total of 35,154 seats between Charleroi and Pula.

From June 1, the new Ryanair line between Pula and Vienna will start operating twice a week, on Wednesdays and Sundays, until September 28. A320 aircraft have been announced on this route.

On June 3, the last, fourth line to Pula, from Poznan, Poland, will start operating. Flights have also been announced twice a week, on Mondays and Fridays, until September 30. Between Pula, Poznan, and Vienna, the Irish airline is offering a total of 25,200 seats this summer.

On the four announced routes to Pula Airport, Ryanair offers a total of more than 90,000 seats (90,216), and with an average passenger cabin occupancy of 86% (data for February 2022), this airline could bring over 80,000 passengers to Pula this summer.

Belgian airline Brussels Airlines is introducing a scheduled flight between Brussels and Zadar in the upcoming summer flight schedule, reports Croatian Aviation.

The seasonal route between Zadar and Brussels was introduced by the Belgian national airline in the 2018 summer flight schedule, but the line was not in operation during the last two seasons due to the pandemic.

Although it did not announce the line in its initial summer announcement, Brussels Airlines subsequently released tickets for this line, which will start operating on May 7.

The flights will run once a week, every Saturday, and are currently scheduled until the end of the summer flight schedule (October 29). The A319 aircraft with a capacity of 141 seats will operate on the route. 

With the return of Brussels Airlines to Zadar Airport, Zagreb Airport remains the only destination in the country to which this airline has not returned after the lockdown in Europe. Zadar Airport, in addition to the Brussels Airlines line, also has a flight to Charleroi in the summer schedule, operated by Ryanair.

For more on flights to Croatia and other travel announcements, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

March 5, 2022 - Director of Operations of Ryanair’s subsidiary Lauda Europe, Tadej Notersberg, reveals the Ryanair Croatia expansion plans.

EX-YU Aviation News spoke to the Director of Operations of Ryanair’s subsidiary Lauda Europe, Tadej Notersberg, about the Ryanair Croatia expansion, which should be expected soon. 

“We can see that demand in Croatia is generally very high. We can also see that the Croatian market has huge potential. There were many routes missing, and the full potential of Croatia wasn’t utilized in the past. The Ryanair Group recognized this potential, and we, as Lauda Europe, are very happy that we can operate these flights for the Ryanair Group. There is also further growth planned for the future. This year we will operate three aircraft from Zagreb and out of Zadar as well. We won’t stop with these six aircraft in Croatia. Currently, we are planning operations with three aircraft from Zagreb this year. However, future growth is planned, and we are quite sure and optimistic that we will be able to increase operations out of Zagreb and out of Croatia in general soon," said Notersberg.

“We were so overwhelmed by the response of our recruitment open day last week that we are very excited to offer another chance to join Lauda Europe’s expanding Croatian bases, where Lauda Europe will operate six A320s this summer. Over the coming years, the Ryanair Group and Lauda Europe will expand opportunities in Croatia that will deliver more traffic, new jobs, and career benefits”, Notersberg said. Namely, in addition to the already held recruitment days in March, there will be a recruitment desk at Zagreb Airport until March 14. Those interested can apply in person and potentially be interviewed on the same day. 

How is the Zagreb Ryanair base going overall? 

“Currently, we are really satisfied with the majority of the markets served out of Zagreb. For example, the UK market performs really well, and Ireland with the Dublin route, despite Croatia Airlines not operating the service in the winter. Then we see German and Swedish markets, Swedish markets … so we are very happy with the current demand. Of course, we are adding some new routes out of Zagreb in the summer, like Bratislava and Corfu. Some tourist destinations in the future are of interest to us too. We really believe that Zagreb can be attractive all-year-round, not just for families and the diaspora, but for tourists as well, so we want to use all these opportunities in the future”.

Ryanair recently halted its Zagreb-Lviv line due to the ongoing crisis in Ukraine. 

“We see a lot of passengers from Slovenia on our Zagreb flights. Even if you go to Zagreb Airport, either in departures or arrivals, you will see that there are a lot of Slovenians. At the airport’s parking, one will notice many cars with Slovenian car plates. We know, and we are sure we are covering the Slovenian market well from Zagreb Airport”.

You can read more at EX-YU Aviation News.

For more on flights to Croatia and other travel announcements, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

January the 29th, 2022 - Ryanair's arrival in the City of Zagreb has been a fantastic move for all of us residents of the capital who are keen to travel elsewhere in Europe for next to nothing. With only Croatia Airlines and their often unjustified ticket prices for basic economy flights being the only option for many for years, the Irish low-cost carrier's presence is reassuring for frequent flyers. David O'Brien of Ryanair has stated that the company has opened more than 80 new Croatian routes, and hired 180 new staff members.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Darko Bicak writes, although the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic has led to changes and temporary reductions in some Croatian routes, Ryanair has almost fully met its expectations since last year's opening of its Zagreb Airport base.

This was confirmed by David O’Brien, who is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ryanair Group for Lauda and Malta Air - the aircraft under this brand have been stationed by Ryanair at Zagreb Airport.

"Zagreb is a metropolis of one million inhabitants within its surroundings, and so many more people gravitate to it. Based on our rich experience I can say with certainty that the planned 3.5 million passengers per year is a very conservative estimate. It will probably grow even more in the coming period,'' said O'Brien, who visited Zagreb recently and announced some new Croatian routes and three more aircraft to be based there.

Ryanair were observing Zagreb for a very long time...

He added that the Croatian capital has been in Ryanair's focus for a long time now and that he is happy that they finally managed to open up a base here, not only the route, but also the base.

"We've long viewed Zagreb as Lufthansa's backyard because the fact is that, although there are other carriers, you actually have to use Lufthansa and its partners to go anywhere in Europe. Ryanair wants to change that and be a quality competition that will give Croatia's residents and passengers coming to Zagreb a much better and cheaper service,'' stated O’Brien.

He added that Ryanair currently has six routes to Croatia country this year - Zagreb, Zadar, Rijeka, Pula, Split, Dubrovnik, of which there are bases in Zagreb and Zadar where it holds three aircraft.

“We've opened more than 80 Croatian routes and created 180 direct jobs. This is a total investment of 600 million US dollars from Ryanair in Croatia, and all this without a single euro of any state subsidies from the government, unlike the 12 million euros that Croatia Airlines receives annually,'' he explained.

He added that Zagreb as an air destination differs from the other five in Croatia because it is the capital city, which is a model that, for airlines, means that it has a year-round interest in travel, and also that it can represent a short trip of just several days.

For the base in Zagreb itself, O'Brien pointed out that this is an investment totalling 300 million US dollars, given that three aircraft are or will be based there, each worth about 100 million dollars

"We've remained in operation throughout the entire coronavirus pandemic and our aircraft occupancy is solid, standing at over 85 percent. However, the emergence of the Omicron strain has led to certain disorders - France and Germany previously banned arrivals from the United Kingdom, Morocco banned arrivals from many European countries, and many other European countries introduced their own individual travel restrictions.

Therefore, we had to temporarily reduce the number of flights by about 30 percent, which was followed by reductions in flights related to Zagreb, but we expect a recovery from March onwards and that in the summer of 2022, we should reach 100 million passengers,'' assured David O 'Brien.

For more on Croatian routes by air, land and sea, check out our travel section.

December 14, 2021 - The latest flight news to Croatia as Ryanair Dublin-Zagreb flights have been boosted around the holidays, and Russian carrier S7 will connect Moscow and Zagreb in January next year.

Irish low-cost airline Ryanair has launched additional flights between Zagreb and Dublin, reports Croatian Aviation.

The Dublin-Zagreb line was introduced earlier this month when Ryanair also based its third A320 at Zagreb Airport. The airline currently operates on this line three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays, and additional flights have been announced on Wednesdays around Christmas and New Year.

Ryanair will increase the number of weekly rotations between the two cities from February 4 to March 25 next year, when it will operate on this line four times a week. In addition to the mentioned flights on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays, flights are also introduced on Fridays, which is great for those who want to travel to Dublin (or Zagreb) only on weekends.

In the two months mentioned, Ryanair will offer a total of 12,240 seats on 34 return flights between Zagreb and Dublin. The new flights on Friday will generate nearly 3,000 extra seats.

Croatia Airlines also operates between Zagreb and Dublin, twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays, until January 30 next year.

Croatian Aviation also reports that S7 Airlines will launch a new route between Moscow and Zagreb in January next year.

S7 Airlines operates between Moscow, Pula, Zadar, and Split in the summer flight schedule, and from January next year, regular flights to Zagreb International Airport have been announced.

The airline has confirmed to Croatian Aviation that it will operate between Moscow and Zagreb from January 23, 2022, once a week, every Sunday, until the end of March, i.e., the winter flight schedule. 

A320 aircraft have been announced on the flights between Domodedovo Airport and Zagreb, which have a capacity of 174 seats. For the 9 announced rotations from January, S7 will offer a total of 3,132 seats between Moscow and Zagreb.

For more on flights to Croatia and other travel announcements, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

September 22, 2021 - Could 7 million Zagreb Airport passengers be the reality by 2024? Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary thinks so. 

As TCN already reported yesterday, low-cost airline Ryanair will connect Zagreb with 24 destinations in 16 countries in the winter flight schedule. In December, it will introduce a third aircraft into the Zagreb base, expecting around one million passengers on all routes by next summer, announced Ryanair CEO, Michael O'Leary.

Three based A320 aircraft with a capacity of 180 seats will operate from Zagreb to Baden Baden, Basel, Brussels, Dortmund, Dublin, Düsseldorf, Eindhoven, Frankfurt, Gothenburg, London, Malaga, Malta, Malmö, Manchester, Memmingen, Milan, Naples, Oslo, Paris, Paphos, Podgorica, Rome, Sofia, and Sofia.

"Ryanair is investing in Croatia to help it recover from the tourism industry after Covid and strengthened connectivity with the rest of Europe as Ryanair continues to grow and air transport returns to pre-pandemic levels. As Ryanair takes over 55 new B737-8200 aircraft this winter, we are pleased to base three new aircraft in Zagreb, which will fly a total of 24 new routes during Ryanair's first Zagreb-based winter," he said. 

This is also Ryanair's first winter flight schedule from Zagreb, which starts at the end of October. O'Leary added that this is his first press conference and visit to Zagreb, reports Jutarnji List.

He emphasized that Zagreb is a great challenge for them and that they see great potential there, as in the whole of Croatia, already recognized in the world for its tourism. For Zagreb, he pointed out that it is currently one of the growing 'hot city break' destinations.

"People want to come to Zagreb, especially for the Christmas fair in winter, and it also has a lot of cultural and historical sights, good food and a growing number of foreign tourists. The recognizability of Croatia in football is also important, and as far as I was able to see, there are a lot of beautiful women," O'Leary added.

The Ryanair CEO believes that Zagreb deserves to have at least about 3.5 million air passengers a year because it is the capital, and he believes that in cooperation with Zagreb Airport, with which they share a vision of growth, these figures will be reached.

He reiterated Ryanair's earlier announcements that they would invest a total of $300 million in Zagreb to 'base' three aircraft by the end of this year, two of which are already in the base from July and September, thus directly creating 100 jobs and another 750 indirect ones throughout Croatia. However, he would be disappointed if they only brought the fourth plane to Zagreb next summer because they could have three to five of them there.

He also mentioned the excellent cooperation with other airports in Croatia - Zadar, Pula, and Dubrovnik, and that from next spring, they will fly to Rijeka. Still, only Zagreb will work in the winter, while other flights will be seasonal. 

O'Leary noted that Ryanair wants Croatia Airlines to be a "living and healthy" company, as they do not have the same passenger structure nor fly to the same destinations and airports.

"We care that Croatia Airlines lives, and we did not come here to destroy it, but we came to create healthy competition, and as the line to Dublin did not destroy the Polish LOT or AirLingus, neither will CA," O'Leary replied.

He is satisfied with the current business with Zagreb and Croatia. He expects continued strong demand for their flights, concluding that there is no reason why the number of total air passengers of all carriers will not increase to around 7 million in the next three years.

The airport should be handling 3.5 million passengers next year, six million in 2023, and over seven million travelers in 2024. We plan on carrying over ten million passengers in cooperation with Zagreb Airport over the next five to six years”, Mr O’Leary said.

Ryanair was expected to announce new routes to Zagreb at this press conference. However, the company instead used media attention to promote its lines from the new Zagreb base.

Follow the latest flights to Croatia HERE and the latest travel updates and COVID-19 news from Croatia HERE.

September 21, 2021 - The Ryanair Zagreb winter schedule has been announced with 24 routes, and plans to add another jet to the capital city base are in the works for next summer.

Ryanair announced the first winter flight schedule from the new Zagreb base at a press conference in the capital on Tuesday. 

Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary said at the press conference today: "Ryanair is investing in Croatia to help it recover from the tourism industry after Covid and strengthened connectivity with the rest of Europe as Ryanair continues to grow and air transport returns to pre-pandemic levels. As Ryanair takes over 55 new B737-8200 aircraft this winter, we are pleased to base three new aircraft in Zagreb, which will fly a total of 24 new routes during Ryanair's first Zagreb-based winter." 

Three based A320 aircraft with a capacity of 180 seats will operate on 24 international scheduled flights from Zagreb to Baden Baden, Basel, Brussels, Dortmund, Dublin, Dusseldorf, Eindhoven, Frankfurt, Gothenburg, London, Malaga, Malta, Malmo, Manchester, Memmingen, Milan, Naples, Oslo, Paris, Paphos, Podgorica, Rome, Sofia, and Thessaloniki.

Ryanair also plans to add a fourth aircraft to the Zagreb base next summer and will add a third jet in Zagreb this December, though O’Leary did not reveal which routes could be expected.

“We are not focusing on routes covered by Croatia Airlines but those that are not served from Zagreb. The airport should be handling 3.5 million passengers next year, six million in 2023 and over seven million travellers in 2024”, O’Leary said, as reported by Ex Yu Aviation.

O’Leary also took the chance to criticize Croatia Airlines:

“In the past six months, Croatia Airlines has introduced three new routes, while Ryanair is in the process of adding 24. Croatia Airlines has also been the beneficiary of twelve million euros in state aid. We, on the other hand, receive no subsidies from the government. Croatia Airlines is a distinguished carrier but it has lost touch with the development of air travel in Croatia, particularly from Zagreb. We do not see them as a competitor because even on the routes we both operate on, we fly to different airports”.

Ryanair also stated that the investment in the Zagreb base is worth $300 million. 

The new winter lines are currently on sale and one-way tickets are already available at a price of 150 kuna or 19.99 euros. Tickets at these prices must be booked by Thursday, September 23, at midnight.

Follow the latest flights to Croatia HERE and the latest travel updates and COVID-19 news from Croatia HERE.