Croatia Airlines is due to take delivery of its ninth Airbus A220 aircraft, with a tenth expected to follow shortly afterwards. The upcoming Airbus A220-300, which will be registered 9A-CAR, completed its first test flight in Montreal last Friday after undergoing several engine runs and taxi tests. It will become the second A220 delivered to the carrier this year, following the arrival of an A220-100 in March. After the delivery of 9A-CAR, Croatia Airlines is expected to receive a further five A220-300s by the end of this year, barring any additional delays, with the final aircraft to arrive next year. Seven of the airline's eight A220s are currently in service, while one remains grounded following the runway incident at Split Airport in mid-May. All the carrier's A220 aircraft are on financial lease agreements and are owned by leasing companies.
Croatia Airlines said it continues to face elevated costs and operational disruption due to delays in the delivery of its A220 aircraft, as it moves towards a single-type fleet. The airline noted that cumulative delays in A220 deliveries have now exceeded seventy months. “Deliveries of new Airbus A220 aircraft to Croatia Airlines have been repeatedly postponed by the manufacturer. At present, cumulative delays for the Airbus A220 fleet exceed seventy months. Such uncertainty significantly complicates operational planning and exposes the airline to considerable cost pressures”, Croatia Airlines has said.
The carrier's fleet transition has not been without challenges. Apart from delivery delays, Croatia Airlines is still paying leases on two Dash 8 Q400s (registered 9A-CQA and 9A-CQD) one of which was withdrawn from service in July 2025 and the other in January 2026. “The final return of both aircraft to their owner has been significantly delayed due to disruptions in the supply of parts and the heavy workload at aircraft and engine maintenance facilities. Until the handover is completed, Croatia Airlines continues to pay lease costs for these aircraft, representing a substantial unplanned expense caused by the ongoing supply chain crisis in the aviation industry”, Croatia Airlines noted. Although the aircraft had been handed back to their original owner, they were subsequently returned to Croatia Airlines so the carrier could restore them to their original condition prior to final redelivery.
So they will get the bulk of this year's deliveries in winter when they will have nothing to do with these planes.
ReplyDeleteThey have nothing to with those planes in the summer as well. They canceled few routes, instead of opening few new ones
DeleteYes but imagine in winter when even in normal circumstances many planes are not operating.
DeleteMaybe they finally expand network in winter then
DeleteDon't count on it. They discontinued 6 routes this summer
DeleteAnd launched 2 so net loss of 4 routes
DeleteYes but they also cut frequencies on several routes
DeleteDoes anybody believe in scenario that at some point in the future AirSerbia may wet-lease them?
DeleteDoubt it. But we will see what happens with Air Baltic. It's on verge of bankruptcy.
DeleteUnder EU law there is no “illegal aid” you simply close old airline, and open new one. So whatever happens, Croatia Airlines will live forever! No worries
DeleteYes, sure.
DeleteWe saw how it worked with Malev and Estonian.
And Adria
DeleteThey can rent these out to JU.
DeleteOU is not owner, planes are leased, But good idea. They can rent for less they pay to leasor. Thank you Jasmin.
DeleteI still can't get over the fact that they are paying for Q400 aircraft they are not using. Management teams have been fired for much less.
ReplyDeleteNuts
DeleteMind blowing. They are paying for an aircraft for 11 months already because they can't get it in its original state.
DeleteWhat they need to do? If something is broke they replace it or they need to fit new seats...
DeleteMost likely missing some part in the cabin which can't be found on the market. There are still massive shortage of spare parts on the market.
DeleteHow can they be paying leases for an aircraft that has been flying with National Jet Express in Australia for some time now?
Delete^ amazing that you would make something like that up.
DeleteSo 1 of the Q400s is stored in Zagreb while the other just arrived in Australia 5 days ago. "Flying for some time" in fact it hasn't flown for the Australian airline at all yet.
Really wondering why you lied though?
You would be amazed what had happened... In short the incompetence and stupidity on this company permeates from top to bottom, same way that a proverbial fish rots.
DeleteThe problem is that that has now descended to the operational level of the company; technical department and soon to be unveiled in the operations...
Seventy months of delays is astonishing. At this point Airbus should be compensating airlines far more aggressively for the disruption. Croatia Airlines has shown remarkable patience throughout this fleet renewal programme
ReplyDeleteIf someone is to get compensated by Airbus, it can only be the lessor, not OU.
DeleteContracts are multilayered, so the final operator has its rights for compensation.
DeleteYou buy a plane ticket and you end up going by CAR
ReplyDelete(I'll escort myself out.)
One of the next two could be in Star livery
ReplyDelete*should be
Delete*will be
DeleteWonder if it will be with the black tail or the white tail
DeleteWhite is cheaper
DeleteDo we know which city name the planes will have?
ReplyDeleteWhat are the existing city names that are used on the A220s currently?
DeleteDubrovnik, Pula, Zagreb, Split, Vukovar, Rijeka, Osijek, Zadar
DeleteThanks! So what is likely to be the next one?
DeleteThey will just follow the names on the other aircraft - Zagorje, Primorje, Istra...
DeleteThe 15th one should be named Jasmin.
DeleteI would support that lol
Delete😂😂😂
DeleteThis has got to be one of the worst managed fleet transitions and its only 15 planes!
ReplyDeleteWell said, you don't know how true this statement will soon prove to be...
DeleteIt's encouraging that nine A220s are almost delivered. Once the full fleet arrives, Croatia Airlines should finally be able to reap the benefits of a modern, efficient single-type operation.
ReplyDeleteHow yes no. lol
DeleteOnce all of the A220 are delivered, excuses stop. That's the important bit
Delete09.32
DeleteHahahahahahahahahahahahaha
I guess it's the third floor in Buzin the comment comes from. Exactly their language: bureaucratic, meaningless, empty and dryly
Benefits will be rept that's for sure. We'll see by whom...
DeleteJasmin is our leader, shine and future. Greetings from Buzin
DeleteEvery new A220 delivery is good news.
ReplyDeleteNot if you work in the finance department.
DeleteNot if you fly from Split.
DeleteEvery A220 has resulted this year in the biggest loss in history.
DeleteNot if you are tax payer in Croatia
DeleteIt's the tourists who pay the taxes that fund OU, so don't worry PIR your money is being spent wisely.
DeleteLOL! Expert posting again. Expert in advocating crime, corruption and incompetence! LOL again!
DeleteJasmin is the best of the best in Europe! Expert no1
DeleteAt least Jasmin is properly qualified to run an Airline. Kresimir Kucko didn't have a University degree, his only qualification that he was next door neighbour to the P.M at the time. Shows how corrupt the SDP were.
DeleteKresimir Kucko was CEO of Gulf Air and Air Mauritius after criminal organization with final verdict made him leave the position after he managed to pay off all debts Mišetić left and brought OU to zero losses making it starting point for the growth. My question to Party bot blaming P.M. and SDP for all the damage his criminal organization made: Did they appoint Kučko to be CEO in Gulf Air and Air Mauritius as well? And I will answer: once again you are pathetic in your attempts to advocate crime, corruption and incompetence of your Party and their aparatchiks in OU
DeleteThe fact they are still paying for two Dash 8s that haven't flown passengers in months perfectly sums up Croatia Airlines.
ReplyDeleteIt is something Attorney General should look into. Oh, wait, he is "naš dečko "
DeleteNine aircraft already and six more to go. The end is finally in sight, although the airline has probably spent millions more than originally budgeted because of these delays.
ReplyDeleteThe end is finally in sight, literally. On that one I couldn't agree more
DeleteWoooow, amazing. Huge growth of company!!
DeleteAmazing!!!! Soon they will be bigger than Air Serbia! Oh, wait...
DeleteThe A220 programme has been great for passengers but much less great for airlines waiting for their aircraft.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget the engine issues.
DeleteAnd corrosion
DeleteThe A220 has transformed the passenger experience compared to the older fleet. It's just unfortunate the rollout has taken so long.
ReplyDeleteHow did it transform it?
DeleteThe passenger feedback has generally been very positive.
DeleteNot positive enough to turn OU into profitable company.
DeleteThe passenger feedback has generally been very positive. The challenge now is completing the transition quickly enough to realise the operational savings.
DeleteIt also transformed their bottom line into even bigger losses.
DeleteYeah, we saw pleasure of off runway excursion on the type due to engine failure and passenger experience and satisfaction related to it
DeleteThere was NO engine failure or any mechanical issues.
Delete@Anon 21:50 so you are just gonna blame the crew without any evidence? Don’t comment something so stupid when you have nothing to back it up with.
DeleteThe aircraft flight data recorder showed that there was no mechanical error or any failure that would have caused the crash.
DeleteReferring to an accident as "crash", you showed your knowledge on aviation. As such, I am positive you are familiar with the recordings from FDR 😂
DeleteAny idea when the grounded A220 in Split may fly again?
ReplyDeleteAny idea what caused a problem in Split?
DeleteStill conspiracy of silence?
It takes a while for these things to be investigated. Patience
DeleteLoss of engine thrust.
DeleteThe plane is not on the bottom of the ocean, but in front of their nose.
DeleteEveryone knew 30 min after accident what was a reason, but obviously some "glavesine" try to hide who knows what.
There was no loss of trust.
DeleteOf course not. It was decided so in Središnjica
DeleteThe grounded aircraft in Split and the delivery delays have made 2026 a particularly challenging year for Croatia Airlines.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if the airline regrets retiring the Dash fleet so early
ReplyDeleteProbably not. The Dash 8s were approaching expensive maintenance events.
DeleteThe grounding of the Split incident aircraft probably couldn't have happened at a worse time, just before peak season.
ReplyDeleteIt had 0 impact on the schedule. Airline has too many aircraft for current network, which is not very big to begin with.
DeleteAnyone flown the ETF ATR72 that is flying for Croatia Airlines?
ReplyDeleteJust like any other ATR, nothing to write about honestly. But if OU wants to market themselves as one type airline, then being rebooked to ATR on Munich flights (which are business orientated) is absolutely shitstorm, especially as when you book the flight it says WiFi is available
DeleteZagreb-Munich is barley an hour…can’t you survive without wifi for a little bit??
DeleteShitstorm is a bit ott, zar ne?
DeleteAs someone who regularly flys, its a problem of expectancy. If there's wifi marketed, theb they better deliver. People need to check emails on the fly and in the air.
DeleteAnd now also flying to Zürich with that small and loud airplane. They absolutely hate their customers. It's 1h40min on a very loud plane.
DeleteBright and shiny :)
ReplyDeleteBright and funny :)
DeleteYou never know if you will get on or off road airplane.
Youngest fleet in the wider region
DeleteYoungest doesn't mean the best. Or the most appropriate. Quite the opposite
DeleteThe real surprise is that Croatia Airlines is still paying leases on aircraft withdrawn from service a year ago.
ReplyDeleteLeasing contracts have return clauses, and don't forget that the Dash program as been sold by Bombardier a few years ago.
DeleteThe new owner is the newly created De Havilland Canada, and they are struggling with the supply chain as they are not a major actor on the market.
So to get the aircraft into agreed return condition OU has to wait for the components to be overhauled.... Same problem for many operators worldwide when your contracts were signed 15 years and more ago.
Anon 0814, you are an insider and as such know more than well why the cqa hasn't been returned. When the time comes it will be just another argument to prove that incompetence and stupidity has descended to the operational level
DeleteCongratulations Croatia Airlines! Very impressive
ReplyDeleteHahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. Yeah, percentage on lease contracts and double lease contracts is indeed very impressive
DeleteBravo OU!
ReplyDeleteLOL!LOL!LOL!LOL!LOL!
DeleteOnly 9 posts today!? Was the coffee in Rijeka not good today?
DeleteHow about PIR asking you the same question? Središnjica paying you to advocate their crime, corruption and incompetence?
Delete