Zagreb to restore long haul network by 2025, eyes US flights
Zagreb Airport hopes to establish nonstop flights to the United States in the coming period and expects its existing long haul operations to be fully restored between 2022 and 2025. Speaking to the “Avioradar” portal, the General Manager of Zagreb Airport, Huseyin Bahadir Bedir, said, “We are in constant contact with carriers across the world to negotiate and reach an agreement to increase airport traffic. The US market is no exception. We are working on the establishment of nonstop flights between the United States and Zagreb. However, ultimately, whether these services will be introduced depends on the commercial decision of the individual carrier”. Despite some favourable circumstances, such as the recent US visa waiver for Croatian citizens, as well as the success of United Air Lines and Delta on their seasonal flights to Dubrovnik, it is unlikely a US carrier will commence operations to the Croatian capital next summer. The last time Zagreb boasted scheduled flights to the United States was during the summer of 1991, when Pan Am maintained four weekly nonstop roundtrips from New York with its Airbus A310 aircraft. Prior to that, JAT Yugoslav Airlines ran services from Zagreb to New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.
During the last normal year for commercial aviation, in 2019, a total of 136.638 people flew indirectly between Zagreb and the States, based on OAG data. Zagreb - New York (all airports included) was the most popular, accounting for 21% of all passengers between the Croatian capital and the US. It was followed by Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, Miami, Boston and Houston. Lufthansa shuttled the most passengers between Zagreb and the United States, accounting for 22% of all indirect travellers. It was followed by Croatia Airlines, which benefits from a sizeable number of codeshare partnerships with airlines flying to the US, including Lufthansa. On the other hand, British Airways accounted for 11% of Zagreb’s US travellers.
Indirect passenger traffic between Zagreb and US cities in 2019
Top five busiest connecting carriers between Zagreb and the US in 2019
Mr Bedir believes it will take up to 2025 for the airport’s long haul operations to be fully restored. Prior to Covid-19, Zagreb Airport boasted nonstop seasonal operations to Canada, maintained by both Air Canada Rouge and Air Transat, as well as to Seoul, with services performed by Korean Air. At this point, Air Canada and Air Transat are expected to restore flights to Zagreb next year, although Korean Air is unlikely to return in 2022. However, changes at this early stage remain likely. “It is no secret the resumption of medium and long haul flights primarily depend on travel restriction imposed by different countries. Zagreb Airport had a notable number of passengers from the Far East, Australia and North America. The return of these flights will depend on boarder restrictions. We expect the gradual resumption of these services between 2022 and 2025”, Mr Bedir noted.
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