Croatia Airlines to go long-distance over long-haul with A220s


Croatia Airlines plans to introduce more long-distance destinations, rather than operate long-haul flights with its incoming A220 fleet, the carrier’s Chief Commercial Officer, Slaven Žabo said. Long-distance flights would usually be defined as medium-haul routes, lasting between three and six hours. Speaking at the Istanbul Airshow, where the airline had its A220-300 jet on display, Mr Žabo told the “HavaSosyalMedya” portal, “At the moment Croatia Airlines is not considering operating long-haul flights with the Airbus A220 but what we plan to do with this aircraft type is long-distance flights. Because of its efficiency and range possibilities, we will be able to launch new routes that we are currently not operating”.

Croatia Airlines previously said most of the new routes it plans to introduce over the next three years will be in Europe and the Mediterranean region. However, with plans to commence new intercontinental operations as well, north Africa and the Middle East are likely options for its future network growth. Furthermore, the carrier will put an emphasis on year-round connectivity to reduce its high summer seasonality. Croatia Airlines plans to add new routes as more A220s join the fleet. With one unit currently in operation and a second due to arrive by the end of the year, the airline is likely to unveil its first batch of new routes for the summer of 2025. It will take delivery of a further five A220s next year.

Mr Žabo noted the Croatian flag carrier is not concerned over ongoing durability issues affecting some Pratt & Whitney engines on A220 aircraft. “We are very confident in Pratt & Whitney engines because they are our long-lasting partner. Pratt & Whitney are not just powering our A220s but also a part of our existing fleet and we strongly believe they will be able to overcome existing problems”. Commenting on the airline’s new seasonal service between Split and Istanbul, launched earlier this year, Mr Žabo said the airline is “strongly working and believing” it can extend the operation to year-round.



Comments

  1. Anonymous09:02

    Doesn't the A320 also allow flights up to 6 hours?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:06

      It can, but the A220 is more efficient and has lower capacity, meaning thinner routes can be operated

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:07

      For how long can A220 operate with a full load? I mean how many hours?

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:43

      @9.09
      But the leasing price is so much higher that I'm not sure they will be able to make a profit in the end even with the fuel efficient A220.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:59

      "Anonymous09:07
      For how long can A220 operate with a full load? I mean how many hours?"

      A 220 300 has a range fully fuelled with 125 pax, of around 6000km, theoretically aircraft can fly for 6 hours, which will give it range of around 5000km, but it is very inefficient for these aircraft to fly such long distances. OU is very likely to lease A321 XLR at some point in future, for north American market, this is after 2030, I don't expect them to start intercontinental flights before 2030.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous10:30

      Bravo Croatia Airlines, long haul with a220. Amazing 🤩, bravo definitely bravo plus a321xlr in future! Croatia Airlines management is doing wonders!

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:31

      ^ if you at least read the headline, you would know they don't plan long haul

      Delete
    7. Anonymous10:58

      He is "confident" and he "believes" those are the best strategies.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous14:33

      Don't forget articles about Croatia being in talks with Boeing regarding MAX order just months before they signed Airbus MoU for A220.

      That means no need to fully trust statements about XLR for the very distant future. All A220s are arriving by 2027 and that's the time OU will need XLRs. They won't be able to get large order of 321XLRs delivered by then, but they only need a couple and could lease them with one or two arriving in 2027 or 2028.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous18:11

      They actually were in talks with Boeing. They were with Embraer too. It is logical when you are getting a new aircraft type for your fleet.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous18:12

      And regarding XLR they just said they were looking into it, nothing more.

      Delete
    11. Anonymous21:08

      That's what they said. What they didn't say is once all or almost all A220s are in the fleet, their aspirations of growing Croatia Airlines into long-haul airline would need introduction of A321XLR. They want to use A220 fleet as a feed for long haul, and would use long-haul as a tool against seasonality of Croatian aviation market. No point in having bunch of new A220 waiting 5-10 years before getting A321XLR. They will want them by 2028 or earlier.

      Delete
    12. Anonymous21:50

      Changes regarding Croatia Airlines done by Plenkovic administration is stunning, A220’s plus opening of new markets. Just stunning!

      Delete
    13. Anonymous00:14

      ^ Croatia airlines has not opened a single new market since Plenkovic came to power except Split-Istanbul summer seasonal. In fact it has withdrawn from many markets since he came to power.

      Delete
  2. Anonymous09:02

    I'm really interested to see what they launch. I highly doubt anything in the Middle East is on the cards but let's see

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:04

      Not at the same cost.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:09

      ^ sorry my above comment was meant as a response to the first comment under the article.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:46

      9.02
      Not a lot of options in the Middle East. No use in starting Dubai since it is already covered by Flydubai and potentially Emirates comes back one day but maybe they could go for Abu Dhabi.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:49

      Abu Dhabi with Etihad code share year round could work.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous09:50

      Doubt they will go beyond Turkey.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous09:03

    Canary Islands for sure

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:16

      They really need to add more routes in Spain.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:17

      They can't make Barcelona work year round from ZAG so I would not hold ny breath.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:55

      They should expand to Portugal before Ryanair starts it. There is no hope for Spain anymore since Ryanair has taken that market.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:56

      Ryanair will launch OPO next year. Mark my words.

      Delete
  4. Anonymous09:03

    That could capture a lot of the Slovenian leisure traffic of they were smart

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous18:29

      I am sure our carrier will take most of slovenian market if we play smart. We could go to Cape verde or Canary island, get Iceland or UK/Ireland tourists to Dalmatia. Everyone wants to see our Dalamatia.

      Delete
  5. Anonymous09:05

    It's interesting how OU and JU have two completely different approaches to network expansion.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:07

      And we see who make a profit and who make a loss.

      Delete
  6. Anonymous09:06

    Good to hear they are not worried about P&W engine issues I guess.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:08

      What else can they reply?

      We were stupid enough to buy / lease the product that might show some problems. Anyhow, we hope it won't happen to us.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:10

      But they bought it when issues were already known. And they bough 35 of them.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:27

      35? I think up to 15

      Delete
    4. Anonymous12:34

      Just leased.

      Delete
    5. Anonymous12:38

      35 engines

      Delete
    6. Anonymous14:03

      True that, sorry

      Delete
  7. Anonymous09:11

    Are they adding any new route this winter?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:12

      Does not seem like it. It's already October. They would have announced something by now.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:13

      Disappointing they didn't extend any of the new/restored Zagreb seasonal routes.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous09:46

      They still don't have enough aircraft to start new routes this winter.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous09:57

      When is the next A320 family aircraft leaving the fleet?

      Delete
  8. Anonymous09:14

    At least they finally have some ambitions and goals.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:31

      It's still all talk. Let's actually see what happens...

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:43

      True

      Delete
  9. Anonymous09:15

    They should look into increasing frequencies on many routes and retiming them for better transfer connectivity through ZAG.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:43

      +1

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:57

      Exactly. They should first fix their European network and the way many European destinations miss regional connections.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:55

      We call it pain in the willy, pardon my French. They just don't care.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous05:09

      This is really their only hope. They actually have a pretty decent airport at Zagreb which has plenty of room for development and improvements. They should work towards a transfer model with Zagreb airport. I am sure the airport would support them in this.

      But I have always felt that the managers real goal is to keep the airline out of the spotlight and loss making so that state money can be funneled into who knows whos pockets. I can not see any other real explanation here.

      Delete
  10. Anonymous09:44

    I really hope they try to explore some new regions before Ryanair does.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous09:44

    Finally they might add something from Zagreb. Knowing them it will probably be 2 weekly, while they will reduce something else in order to launch it.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous09:45

    Hope they try out Cairo

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous09:46

    Dubai makes sanse now with the new equipment, If emirates could fill 777, Craria can certainly do A220.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous09:48

      Emirates had a network behind it to fill it up. Not sure OU can be compared. But like I just wrote before Abu Dhabi could be an option in order to avoid direct competition with FZ.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:48

      They should launch Split-Dubai in summer. It would be full.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12:32

      Too early.

      Delete
  14. Anonymous09:51

    They could go for leisure routes like Sharm el Sheikh, Hurghada or Monastir. They operated charters to Monastir this summer.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:07

      Yes. Good routes that could cater for both Croatian and Slovenian travelers.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous11:40

      They missed an opportunity to capture Slovenian market when Adria went bust.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous11:41

      I mean they should have established a base in LJU.

      Delete
  15. Anonymous09:59

    The airline should be privatized. With the right management they actually could succeed.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:05

      +100

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:07

      In the end it will be purchased by pension fund most probably.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous10:46

      My mom gets part of her pension from that fund, don't do it please.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous11:40

      Is this pension fund private or state owned?

      Delete
    5. Anonymous05:12

      Once privatized, they will end up like Adria. State owned for now is not a bad thing as long as the intentions are good and positive which clearly is not the case with OU.

      Delete
  16. Anonymous10:05

    time to spread their wings!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous10:05

    The new aircraft looks very sleek

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:08

      Both inside and out :)

      Delete
    2. Anonymous18:09

      It is but I would not want to be stuck on it for 5 hours.

      Delete
  18. Anonymous10:12

    Bravo Hrvatska!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous10:39

    Not the best utilization of A220 in my opinion. But they allowed Ryan to take so much so fast they have no other option. One can build some strategy around this but I'm 100% sure this OU management is not that one.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous11:13

    Long distance means Lisbon, Oslo, Stockholm, Helsinki and Tel Aviv for OU. Don't dream of Dubai or anything further away from the above listed ones.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous11:17

      You are probably right unfortunately.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous11:26

      Sounds OK distance to me. YU, W6 and FR fly these routes on their narrow-bodies casually.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12:48

      What is OU's longest scheduled route at the moment?

      Delete
    4. Anonymous12:51

      Sad to say it's London

      Delete
    5. Anonymous12:59

      Sad indeed

      Delete
  21. Anonymous12:45

    I have never seen an airline think that a new aircraft type is the solution for all of their multiple problems.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous12:47

      Because the solution is management change and of course they don't want to admit that so now they found a solution to sell to the state and give a bunch of promises.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous12:51

      +1000

      Delete
    3. Anonymous14:11

      I'm afraid it's not just management which makes the whole situation dire. To me it looks like the owner at some point abstained from the right to run this company as an independent business.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous18:05

      The government doesn't care but they know that OU going bankrupt would be bad optics for them so they keep pumping money.

      Delete
  22. Anonymous14:22

    OU are a bunch of jokers ............... no brains not understanding airline economics ............

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous14:23

    If OU new what they were doing they would not be every year in the red ........

    ReplyDelete
  24. Anonymous15:29

    Iceland would certainly be a nice addition. One can hope 🤞

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous16:36

      I think Play will beat then to it

      Delete
    2. Anonymous16:42

      *them

      Delete
    3. Anonymous18:08

      Well Play has already launched Reykjavik-Split and are starting Reykjavik-Pula next year.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous04:14

      They also have some charter to ZAG in January for the handball championships.

      Delete
  25. Anonymous16:30

    Anyone knows the longest A220 flights operated by airlines?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous16:43

      I believe Air Baltic flights to Dubai are among the longest.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous17:04



      2,948 nm (4,745km)

      Tampere to Tenerife South

      airBaltic 7h

      Delete
    3. Anonymous17:06

      Mistake: Air Baltic 2.948 statute miles or 4.745 kilometers sorry

      Delete
    4. Anonymous18:00

      Thanks :)

      Delete
    5. Anonymous19:56

      Can the same crew fly TMP-TFS out and back, or do they have to change crew?

      Delete
    6. Anonymous22:11

      There are different rules for working times; I might be wrong but if they put third pilot or double crew (2 active + 2 DHC) than it might be possible for dhc crew on first leg to return airplane back and first crew goes back as DHC (dead-head crew /non working)

      Delete
  26. Anonymous18:01

    With longer flights I also hope they will improve service

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous04:14

      Especially in business class

      Delete
  27. Anonymous18:03

    Good luck Croatia Airlines! Exciting times ahead

    ReplyDelete
  28. Anonymous01:16

    What Croatia Airlines needs is a plane to fly NYC to Split or Zagreb and I assume that’s the A321XLR. We had the direct flight many years ago and now it would serve diaspora and all the Americans looking to go to Croatia.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous01:51

      Honestly with Plenkovic in the US I was hoping he would mention something about flights, but nothing

      Delete
    2. Anonymous09:11

      It would work in high season; when fall hits flight would not work until around Christmas; than again june or something….

      Delete
  29. Anonymous06:44

    Croatia Airlines should improve attention and service on board and not just serve a glass of water to its passengers in economy, where is the attention and service of years ago? If Croatia Airlines continues to offer only a glass of water to its passengers, I see no future for long-haul flights.

    ReplyDelete
  30. Anonymous20:42

    Nice.

    ReplyDelete

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