Croatia Airlines and Airbus Sign Contract for Acquisition of State-of-the-Art Airbus A220 Aircraft

Croatia Airlines and Airbus have signed a contract for the acquisition of state-of-the-art Airbus A220 aircraft, and Croatia Airlines will replace all aircraft with a new unified fleet by 2026 and fully transition to jet-powered planes, as announced by the domestic air carrier.

The national air carrier reminds that the fleet replacement for Croatia Airlines represents a long-term process of transitioning the entire business, and that it follows a period of adjustment of all business processes to the new aircraft.

This will further optimize the operations of the national airline, ensure better passenger cabin occupancy, better crew utilization, while Croatia Airlines will become an even more environmentally friendly carrier and significantly reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.

In addition, significantly higher quality and more comfortable flights will be ensured for passengers, as well as far more economical and sustainable operations, the statement notes, which does not include financial details of the contract.

The CEO of Croatia Airlines, Jasmin Bajić, stated that considering passenger demands, movements in the highly competitive Croatian and global aviation market, fuel prices and CO2 emissions, as well as the goals of EU green policies and the no less important fact of the ‘year of manufacture’ of the existing fleet, the decision to replace the fleet of Croatia Airlines is imperative and fully in line with the adopted post-COVID strategy.

– I am pleased that we are entering a new development cycle of business with a partner we know well and who has indeed offered us conditions that we are currently able to accept based on long-term cooperation. Utilizing the spaces of existing contracts, the fleet renewal represents a continuation of our cooperation with Airbus, or the existing contract under which we will completely replace the old aircraft of Croatia Airlines with new ones by 2026. With new and higher quality aircraft in the market segment of 100 to 150 seats, we will ensure a better response to the specific needs of our passengers, which I am confident will ensure an even more efficient business model, allowing us to open additional spaces in our operations, providing our passengers and our employees with the necessary advantages. – said Bajić.

The Chief Commercial Officer and Head of International Business at Airbus, Christian Scherer, expressed his pleasure that Croatia Airlines is a new user of the A220 aircraft.

– The A220 is ideal for Croatian aviation needs due to its operational flexibility and efficiency, which will help the company achieve its ambitions for regional and international connectivity and provide top-notch services in any aspect, whether it is passenger comfort or travel economy and flight occupancy – said Scherer.

Croatia Airlines reported at the beginning of October that it would replace its existing aircraft with the Airbus A220 by 2026.

As announced at that time, the fleet replacement will be realized through an order of six new A220 aircraft, which have been contracted as an addition to the existing contract that the company concluded in 2008, then for A319 aircraft, which were subsequently replaced in 2015 with A320 neo type, and after the adopted strategy for the new development cycle, the A220 type was chosen, with a capacity of 127 and 148 seats.