Croatia Airlines d.d. is the
national airline and flag carrier of the Republic of Croatia
. Based in Zagreb
, the airline
is a member of Star Alliance and
operates domestic and international services. Its main base is
Zagreb
Airport
, with focus cities at Dubrovnik Airport
and Split
Airport
. In 2008 Croatia Airlines posted a
net profit of 38 million
Croatian kuna and transported 1,870 000
passengers (2008).
[22544]
History
The
airline was established on 20 July 1989 as Zagal Zagreb
Airlines, and started operations using Cessna 402 aircraft on cargo services for the
UPS
. After the first democratic elections held in
Croatia
, Zagal changed its name on 23 July 1990 to
Croatia Airlines.
In 1991
the airline signed an agreement with Adria
Airways and then was able to lease a McDonnell Douglas MD-82 to start domestic jet
services between Zagreb and Split
.
As soon as
flights restarted, Croatia Airlines bought three Boeing 737s from Lufthansa
and became a member of the International Air
Transport Association (IATA). That year also saw the
airline's first international route.
In 1993 two
ATR 42s and two more 737s joined
the fleet, offices were opened in several European cities and the
company bought a travel agency,
Obzor, to organize travel
for groups and individuals. By 1994,
Croatia Airlines had
welcomed its one millionth passenger. Later that year,
Pope John Paul II flew the airline on a
trip to Croatia.
In 1995, another ATR 42 was welcomed, as was the two millionth
passenger.
In 1996, Croatia Airlines became the
first airline to fly to Sarajevo
. In
1997 the airline's first
Airbus A320
arrived and was nicknamed
Rijeka. In 1998, another first
plane of a new type arrived when the airline's first
Airbus A319 joined the fleet. This airplane
was nicknamed
Zadar. Also that year, Croatia Airlines
became a member of the Association of European Airlines (AEA). By
1999, two more Airbus jets had arrived and
Croatia
Airlines started selling the
Boeing part
of their fleet. The airline flew its five millionth
passenger.
In 2000 two more Airbus planes arrived and an
Automated
Ticketing System was inaugurated.
In 2001 the airline
received maintenance and technical performing certificates from the
German
aviation
authority Luftfahrt-Bundesamt
. On 18 November 2004,
Croatia
Airlines joined the
Star
Alliance.
In 2008 the airline retired its fleet of three
ATR 42 short-haul aircraft (in service from 1993), to
be replaced by six
Bombardier
Q400 aircraft, the first two of which were
delivered in May and June 2008.
The airline carried its 20,000,000th passenger in July 2009, and
has carried over 1 million passengers annually from 2000.
Destinations
Croatia Airlines serves the following destinations as at June
2009:
Fleet
The Croatia Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft (as
of 17 June 2009):
Croatia Airlines Fleet
| Aircraft |
Total |
Order |
Passengers (Business/Economy) |
Routes |
Notes |
| Airbus A319-112 |
4 |
4 |
132 (12/120) |
Short-medium haul |
Deliveries: 2012-2013 |
| Airbus A320-200 |
4 |
0 |
164 (18/146) |
Short-medium haul |
|
| Bombardier Dash 8
Q400 |
4 |
2 |
76 (0/76) |
Short haul |
Deliveries: 2010
(4 options)
|
| Total: |
12 |
6 |
|
|
As of 3 July 2009, the average age of the Croatia Airlines fleet
was 8.5 years .
The airline is to acquire six (with options for four more) factory
new 76-seat
Bombardier Dash 8
Q400 aircraft to boost its regional route network. The first
aircraft (registered 9A-CQA) was delivered in May 2008 and the
fleet increases will continue until 2010 with all aircraft on a six
year finance lease.
It is part of their plan to establish
Zagreb
as a major regional hub.
Airbus and Croatia Airlines announced on 22
October 2008 the order of four additional 132-seat A319 aircraft,
to be delivered from 2012.
References
- " contact us." Croatia Airlines. Retrieved on 24
October 2009.
- Flight International 3 April 2007
- Croatia Airlines: 20- milijunti
putnik
- exyuaviation: 20 million for Croatia Airlines
28 July 2009
- Croatia Airlines Fleet
- Croatia Airlines Fleet at CH-Aviation
- Fleet Age
- Croatia Airlines Orders Two Bombardier Q400 Nextgen
Airliners 19 September 2008
- Croatia Airlines to acquire four additional A320
family aircraft 22 October 2008
External links