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.
Again ZAG with their obsession with US flights. They have been talking about them for 15 years now and nothing became of it.
ReplyDeleteIf these flights don't start now, I don't know when they will. No entry restrictions for US tourists, visas being lifted for Croatians, no entry restrictions for vaccinated Croatian citizens....
DeleteConditions are good for the US flights, especially with the US visas being abolished.
ReplyDeleteThe only chance of these US flights happening is for Croatia Airlines to lease a widebody and start it themselves. Otherwise no one else is interested.
DeleteApart from that being extremely expensive, I don't see much point in OU doing that. If you look at the table, they already carry a lot of transfers to the US. Why bother with an expensive route when you can just shuttle people to Frankfurt which seems to be their only successful destination.
Delete@09,19
DeleteExactly. Why should OU open any route when they can shuttle pax to FRA.
Or perhaps OU is not doing so well because it's too focused on shuttling pax to FRA and LH?
+1000000000 @JATBEGMEL
DeleteIt's interesting regarding the Air Canada flights. They are on sale and tickets can be bought but AC made no mention of them in their announcements for summer 2022 where they listed all the European flights they would be operating. Hoping it doesn't get canceled.
ReplyDeleteNew York flights are long overdue.
ReplyDelete2025? I mean Air Canada and Air Transat start next year. I can't believe it will take Korean Air another 4 years to resume Seoul.
ReplyDeleteI have no doubt the Korea flights will resume but it's unlikely next year.
DeleteWell I don't think he meant just restoring the destinations but also restoring pre-Covid frequencies.
DeleteWow Star dominates Croatian market for US transfers. Interesting there is no Turkish Airlines though.
ReplyDeleteOr LOT
DeleteOr Air Serbia
DeleteTK requires alot of backtracking for the US. For example, the difference between connecting to JFK in BEG and IST is around 3 hours of travel time with ideal, quick connections. BEG also requires backtracking, but not as much. It's simply faster and often cheaper via EU hubs ie FRA, CDG, MUC, AMS.
DeleteAs for JU, there isn't much impact they can have with 1 aircraft and 1 route, especially in winter. Their ZAG flights don't always connect to JFK even in the peak summer months.
New York would make most sense.
ReplyDeleteAgree I think b757 will do
DeleteEvery year they say the same.
ReplyDeleteWell I do hope flights eventually start to the US. I was hoping for next summer but seems unlikely.
ReplyDeleteWhat other long haul markets could work other than the ones already served?
ReplyDeleteSingapore once travel restrictions are lifted and Australia reopens.
DeleteJapan also has potential.
DeleteI think Japan, South Korea, China and the US are perspective long haul markets for Croatia.
DeletePre-corona there were plans for Air Asia X to operate charters from Bangkok to Zagreb during 2020. They even scheduled the dates. So I think Thailand is a possible market.
DeleteShame those Bangkok flights didn't happen :(
DeleteWhat about Malaysia? Malaysia Airlines used to fly to Zagreb
DeleteSingapore would make more sense now. Malaysia Airlines has become a pretty irrelevant airline these days. Singapore's subsidiary Scoot would be perfect for seasonal flights to Zagreb and transfers from Australia.
DeleteDoes Scoot even fly to Europe?
DeleteYes, to Athens and Berlin.
DeleteThis is terrible. Every year the same - maybe next year! I was thinking that something would happen next season, but again - nothing...
ReplyDeleteUnited would be prefect for US flights.
ReplyDeleteThey always made the most sense since OU is in Star Alliance.
DeleteOU nowadays only flies to Sarajevo and Skopje in the region. UA would not have much to gain from them.
DeleteThe expectation would be Croatia Airlines would expand its network as a result of United's arrival.
DeleteCroatia Airlines and expectations... ok
DeleteLol
DeleteFlying on a monthly basis to Zagreb with KLM, I was first surprised that KLM isn't in the list of bussiest connecting carriers. My feeling is that these flights are full of Americans.
ReplyDeleteThey however started only late 2020 with the double daily flights to Zagreb, which now also enables people flying from Zagreb with the 06:00 morning flight to connect in Amsterdam to the US flights. I'm sure KLM took some part of the cake in 2021.
KLM definitely ranked in the top last year and this year.
DeleteI think airport management has to work on long haul operations to boost revenue after the discounts they gave to FR. They have to compensate somewhere.
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteThe annual November Zagreb Airport announcement about flights to the US.
ReplyDeleteRight, moving along...
Zagrebovanje
Deletehaha good one
DeleteAir Canada will be able to profit next year in connecting Croatians in Toronto to destinations all over the US, especially since mainline will be flying to Zagreb.
ReplyDeleteThey should try and get them to fly year round to Zagreb
DeleteI don't think there is sufficient demand for these flights during the winter.
DeleteThe Emirates example and the fact that all long hauls to ZAG are operated seasonally shows that the airport MUST work on seasonality. It's a major issue at all airports but they should do everything to get airlines to fly year round.
DeleteI am always fascinated to read such comments when people say, "airports MUST work on seasonality". So how exactly do they do that ? How do they make an airline fly to an airport in a destination when there is little to no demand. Do you think that zero airport fees will make that happen ? To that end, do you have any sense of exactly what proportion of airport landing fees make up the cost of flying to an airport ?
DeleteThe answer to the last question is miniscule, in the overall cost of flying.
The ONLY answer to address seasonality, is for the NTO of the destination to work on promotion to grow awareness, in the hope of creating demand outside of the peak season demand.
Airlines will consider flying when there is demand and the yields are acceptable. Airport fees can then help to get a decision across the line.
But airports - in and by themselves - cannot solve seasonality and "get airlines to fly year round".
Flights to the US could start if OU had the guts to launch long haul flights.
ReplyDeleteWith what money and what supporting network? You won't fill long haul from Zagreb with 30 daily flights from Frankfurt.
DeleteSo much money has been wasted over the past two decades, if they had wanted they could have made the savings and received the state support to start long haul.
DeleteYou need to have a suitable management to launch haul and can steer the airline through initial losses. OU doesn't have that.
DeleteI wouldn't lose hope for US flights in 2022. United started sales for Dubrovnik just 2 months before they launched.
ReplyDeleteThat was because of Covid and the fact Americans couldn't enter almost anywhere in Europe when the announcement was made. It wouldn't be the case now. United and other US airlines have already announced their full list of new destinations for next summer.
DeleteWonder which airlines they are talking to.
ReplyDeleteI really do hope that something materializes out of this.
ReplyDeleteGood luck, I hope we get a surprise of two in the next few months :)
ReplyDeleteIn terms of US flights, highly doubtful.
DeleteI honestly don't understand how Zagreb doesn't have (at least) seasonal flights to the US. I mean, so many American tourists with arrivals increasing every year.
ReplyDeleteGood to see that things are moving forward.
ReplyDeleteEvery year the same - maybe next year!
DeleteZAG needs a SUTT connection to EWR by UA, so it cld codeshare flights of OU
ReplyDeleteZAG-US would also serve Slovenians
+1
DeleteLove the photo in the article
ReplyDeleteNYC :)
DeleteBUD was faster. They managed to secure flights to JFK, ORD & PHL. I think ZAG needs to wait for higher traffic figures.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, ZAG is a lot smaller pax- and traffic-wise than BUD and also more expensive (fees and taxes).
DeleteIf Zagreb is able to sustain 2 Canadian airlines from Toronto seasonally, then I expect they could sustain a US carrier with 1 or 2 flights per week during the summer.
ReplyDeleteCanada and US are not the same market ;)
DeleteI would assume the US market is even bigger actually.
DeleteCroatia's entry to the US Waiver Programme will definitely help meaning no more visas.
ReplyDeleteInterestingly, the US is considering adding Israel, Bulgaria, Romania and Cyprus too.
US carriers have a horrible service especially UA, DL & AA. Hope it would be someone else, like EK for example.
ReplyDeleteEK failed on DXB-ZAG and you expect them to launch ZAG-JFK?
DeleteSpeaking of EK, will they ever return to ZAG?
DeleteConsidering Flydubai is flying 2 weekly, I doubt anytime soon.
DeleteEK didnt "fail" in ZAG. They didnt return these years because of restriction and pandemic. There are no Australians, no Koreans so that rourte cannot simply work currently. When travel goes back to normal, demand will return so probably and Emirates. If Emirates doesnt return, someone will need to take their ex passengers, so there will be more Qatar and Turkish flights.
DeleteNo no no @An.10.49
DeleteEmirates failed in Zagreb. Zagreb is the only capital in EU connected with only one London airport. If there were no subsidies, never one single aircraft would ever take off from or land in Zagreb. Half of the services operating now and half of the companies flying will very soon withdraw from Zagreb because there is no demand. TAP never returned to Zagreb. KLM never introduced second daily. US airlines never have flown to Zagreb and never will. Korean will definitely not come back. Corona scam crisis never happened and so on and so on. How dare you saying opposite? Got it?
The Balkan obsession with the transatlantic flights to US continues.
ReplyDeleteI also don't get the hype about direct flights to the US. Ticket price can't be that much lower than with a single stop in Frankfurt or Munich.
DeleteWell a nonstop flight is always better then one with a stop, no matter how long or short.
Deleteespecially that USA passengers prefer nonstop flights and connections in USA.
DeleteFingers crossed there will be some concrete results.
ReplyDeleteThat was quite an extensive network from Zagreb to the US back in the 80s.
ReplyDeleteWhat ex yu wrote was not all. JAT had scheduled flights from ZAG to Cleveland and Detroit as well in the 80's. Actually even Pittsburgh was scheduled for couple of years
DeleteHere we are again...
ReplyDeleteI hope they find an airline that would serve all year round.
ReplyDeleteThe majority of the Bosnian diaspora would use flights from US to Zagreb if they materialize. So you basically get two markets in one.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget Slovenia too.
DeleteIf there was enough demand, one of US3 carriers would already start the service.
ReplyDeleteFor some things it simply takes time
DeleteHow long? These flights have been discussed for almost 10 years.
DeleteSometimes it takes longer :)
DeleteBravo Hrvatska!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the O&D table. Would be great to see for Slovenia too as it could also contribute to potential future Zagreb flights.
ReplyDeleteI think there was an article here a few months back where it indicated New York was the top unserved US route from Ljubljana.
DeleteIf these flights were to launch next year tickets would already be on sale. There is a reason why both Canadian airlines - Transat and AC Rouge - started sales and announced flights to Zagreb in September.
ReplyDeleteThere is no chance for it to launch next year but hopefully 2023
DeleteSo how many American tourists in Croatia this year?
ReplyDeleteAny chance of OU going long haul and starting all these flights where it is apparent demand - US, Korea, Japan?
ReplyDeleteNo. They don't have the money for such ventures.
DeleteMoney is never problem when you have idea, capability to realize the idea and people able to do it. OU has none. Their World ends in Frankfurt, cartel HQ.
DeleteI am not being skeptical at all and wishing ZAG all the best but if you compare its figures compared to other cities or capitals, it still remains to be relatively small to sustain continuous, huge traffic. Flights to/from US tend to be very expensive, especially slots.
ReplyDeleteAs long as ZAG is well connected to the real airports, there is no need for direct flights to US.
DeleteUhljebi u ofenzivi 😃
DeleteOnce they get the A321XLR, United can start Newark and even Washington, DC, (with connections to various US cities) in high season...and maybe even 2-3 flights per week in winter, if there is business demand.
ReplyDeleteEmirates received advertising subsidies to start Zagreb. Offering a very generous subsidy is key for ZAG to attract service from faraway destinations.
ReplyDeleteHow much subsidies Qatar received!? Korean? Transat? Air Canada? Malaysian and Pan Am in the past? JAT?
Delete