Ex Yu Aviation reports on July 1, 2019, that Ina Rodin of the Croatian National Tourist Office in New York has confirmed that two US carriers are interested in introducing nonstop flights to Zagreb, though it won’t happen next year, or perhaps even the year after that. 

"We are in serious talks with two large carriers and we hope that within the next two to three years we can establish nonstop flights between New York and Zagreb,” Rodin said. 

However, you might recall Croatia’s Minister of Tourism, Gari Capelli, certain that a route between New York and Zagreb would operate already next summer. 

"I hope that we will have this route operational next summer. The service to Zagreb will most likely be seasonal during its first year of operations, while year-round flights could commence during the second year,” Capelli said in June.

While the timing of this highly anticipated service remains up in the air, one thing we do know is that the new American Airlines service between Philadelphia and Dubrovnik should be just the beginning. 

Namely, Romana Vlašić of the Dubrovnik Tourist Board said that not only should American Airlines extend its seasonal operations, but it could introduce some other destinations from the United States to Dubrovnik. 

Croatia’s State Secretary of Tourism, Tonči Glavina, also said that Croatia would “most likely be linked with another city in the United States next year”. 

Zagreb Airport has also openly said they were focusing a connection with New York and were already speaking to airlines back in April. 

"Wherever we see opportunities and demand, we'll go. As with the opening of our Dubrovnik - Philadelphia line, we are very specific about demand. Central Europe has the greatest growth potential. We are preparing to add more and more new links. We want to continue to lead the market. We will look closely at the results for the first year of operations. We are always looking at new opportunities to grow our network to ensure we offer service to where our customers wish to go,” said American Airlines on choosing Dubrovnik over Zagreb and Split. 

So, could Zagreb be next? Stay tuned. 

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