Croatia Airlines reduces operations amid fleet shortage

During the same timeframe, Croatia Airlines will reduce frequencies from its main hub to Dubrovnik, from 29 to 27 weekly flights, to Frankfurt, from nineteen weekly to eighteen weekly, as well as to Zurich, from fourteen weekly to thirteen weekly. Both Mostar and Skopje will also sustain cuts. Services to Mostar will be reduced from three to two weekly rotations while flights to the Macedonian capital will run eight times per week, instead of the initially scheduled nine weekly rotations. In total, the airline has removed twelve weekly flights from its Zagreb network from mid-June.

Flights from Dubrovnik will also be affected. In addition to the reduction in services to Zagreb, the airline will also remove one weekly rotation to Athens for a total of two weekly, while operations between Dubrovnik and Rome will be cut from two to one weekly. Frequencies on all the abovementioned routes are expected to be restored at the end of June, however, changes remain possible. It comes as the airline struggles with capacity. The carrier is currently wet-leasing an Airbus A320 aircraft from Trade Air, an A319 from Fly41 Airways, a Boeing 737-800 from Albastar, and was recently forced to conclude a short-term wet-lease for an Xfly CRJ900 jet, although the aircraft no longer operates on Croatia Airlines’ behalf. The Croatian carrier is expected to take delivery of its first new Airbus A220-300 aircraft at the end of the month.