Ryanair has cemented its position as the largest carrier in Croatia this year, a title it achieved for the first time in 2023. The low cost airline almost doubled in size on the Croatian market in 2024 compared to last year, adding an additional 1.526.366 seats with 4.324.472 seats available in Croatia overall. Whereas the difference between the budget carrier and Croatia Airlines last year stood at just 124.000 seats, capacity-wise, the difference in 2024 is at over 1.45 million seats. It comes as a result of Ryanair opening a new base in Dubrovnik this summer and expanding its operations in Zagreb and Zadar. This year, Ryanair will account for a significant 27.7% of Croatia’s total capacity, cementing its position as the country’s largest airline. This is in contrast to the pre-pandemic 2019, when it accounted for just 5.7% of Croatia’s total capacity.
Croatia Airlines lost its mantle as the country’s largest carrier last year. Ryanair noted, “Ryanair, Croatia’s largest airline, has delivered low fares, connectivity, and tourism to Croatia for over fifteen years and has single-handedly driven Croatia’s post-Covid traffic recovery. Since the pandemic, Ryanair has invested over 800 million US dollars in Croatia, with the opening of its new Dubrovnik (two aircraft) base and aircraft bases at both Zagreb and Zadar. Ryanair also offers flights to four other Croatian airports - Osijek, Pula, Rijeka and Split. Ryanair has continued to deliver Europe’s lowest fares and greater connectivity for Croatian citizens”. During 2024, Ryanair operated an additional 7.909 Croatia flights compared to last year, for a total of 23.306, some 2.931 fewer than Croatia Airlines.
Apart from having the most capacity, Ryanair also boasts a very high average cabin load factor, which forms an integral part of its business model. During the first three quarters of the year, the airline’s average cabin load factor across its network stood at 93.8%. On the other hand, Croatia Airlines’ average loads for the same period amounted to 64.7%, or 64.2% on international services and 62.9% on domestic flights. At this point, Ryanair will add an additional 196.547 seats on the Croatian market during the first half of next year. This is before the airline schedules new routes from the country and growth in frequencies on existing services. Ryanair is shortly expected to outline its planned expansion from Zagreb and the possibility of an additional aircraft to be based in Dubrovnik. On the other hand, Croatia Airlines has signalled it will be more assertive next year, with the arrival of an additional four new Airbus A220 aircraft by the summer of 2025 and the planned launch of eight new routes.
Biggest markets from Croatia in 2024 by capacity
Those numbers are brutal for Croatia Airlines. Difference last year 124,000 and now 1.4 million :O
ReplyDeleteDid you even read the article?
DeleteYes I did. Last year difference in capacity between Ryanair and Croatia Airlines was just 124,000 seats now its over 1.4 million. I don't see where is the confusion
Delete@9.02 brutal in English means bad, not amazing like in local languages
DeleteHope OU can improve and catch up a bit next year
Delete^ good luck with that
DeleteCroatia Airlines first did almost nothing when Ryanair arrived, and the clueless management thought that a PR campaign could chase away Ryanair from Zagreb. But they failed even at that.
DeleteNow they need some "move" so they are buying the A220 and ironically it will be this move that kills Croatia Airlines and not Ryanair's arrival in Zagreb.
Jasmin will make OU great again! He did unimaginable last months, amount of effort he and his team delicates is just staggering in order to make OU leader in EU! Wait and see, Croatia Airlines will crush every competitor at Croatian market!
Deletegreat that OU will expand next year but it's a lost battle against FR. Management should not have sat thumbling their fingers for the past 4 years.
ReplyDeleteThey were waiting for what they think will solve all their problems forever - the A220
DeleteOU isn't going anywhere. The taxpayer will keep it going
DeleteOf course the battle is lost, Ryanair is the largest airline in Europe. The problem for Croatia Airlines is not that Ryanair has more passengers, the problem is that Croatia Airlines has no strategy and a terrible load factor.
DeleteGoing from 5% to almost 30% share in just a few years is really something
ReplyDeleteNot surprising really when your main 'competitor' does not compete.
DeleteOU could have used Ryanair's expansion in Croatia as an opportunity but instead they do the complete opposite
DeleteIt helps when you have a fleet of over 100 aircraft and more than 100 on order
DeleteI actually don't think this is good. The bigger Ryanair's share is the more blackmail power they have over airports.
DeleteYes, but they bring so many passengers that it doesn't matter. In Tuzla or Skopje this would be a problem, but Croatia has so many flights by so many different airlines that it doesn't matter. Ryanair's overall share is still low at less than a third.
DeleteKajgot!
ReplyDelete😂
DeleteCroatia Airlines = Ryanair country. Interesting that no other LCC tries to replicate that dominance
ReplyDelete* that was supposed to be Croatia not Croatia Airlines
DeleteSome comments here are honestly so ridiculous. Ryanair has not even a third of the market share in Croatia and you are calling Croatia Ryanair country?
DeleteOK, than Lufthansa, Easyjet, Ryanair, Eurowings etc etc country, like most Mediterranean countries around.
DeleteBravo Hrvatska!
ReplyDeleteRyanair is the bigest airline in Europe with 182 milion pax. last year.
ReplyDeleteFor OU to even rub shoulders with them is insane/ a massive competitor that is almost 100 times as big.
But hej, what does not kill you makes you stonger - so OU needs to put a though fight with the help of Crotaian governament.
I think, Ryanair, was more than enough fair player toward Croatia Airlines entering the market coutiously. They had a very limited network from ZAG in first 2 years. OU just never woke up from hibernation mode.
Delete"OU needs to put a though fight with the help of Crotaian governament."
DeleteThis is against all principles of fair competition and it's actually insane that people even suggest this with a straight face. The role of the state is NOT to distort the market.
I was hoping that Ryanair's arrival would have a positive impact on Croatia Airlines in the sense that it would make them wake up and start competing. I was wrong
DeleteIt kind of did happen though - Croatia Airlines moved a lot of capacity to coastal airports.
DeleteWhat does "though fight" mean? Can't figure it out.
DeleteVictor, you still around?
Croatia Airlines did have a very limited response: it forget a closer relationship with Split Airport and moved flights there. And this was a good thing because Split is a huge market in the summer that Croatia Airlines was ignoring almost completely.
Delete@09:21 Very true. Ryanair actually didn't attack Croatia Airlines at all, except in Dublin. A proper attack would be to now launch Dubrovnik, Stockholm, Helsinki, Bucharest, Prague, Sarajevo and Lisbon.
DeleteThat OU load factor....
ReplyDeleteI do not understand how the management do not see that as a burning issue. Why don't they just lower prices to get more customers? What's the point of flying half-empty planes? I was on a flight from Zagreb to Sarajevo once and there was only 4 of us on board. Tickets were 150 euros!!
DeleteInteresting to see BiH and Macedonia in Croatia Airlines' top 10 markets.
ReplyDeleteOU is always in top 10 for Sarajevo and Skopje when the capacity levels are published each month.
DeleteThey also fly to Mostar in Bosnia and Herzegovina
DeleteDid they operate Split-Skopje this summer?
DeleteYes, 2 weekly.
DeleteGreat to see tĥese very interesting numbers. Puts a lot of things into perspective and makes you realize Ryanair's sheer size on the market. Thanks admin. Much better then rekla kazala analysis by some.
ReplyDelete+1
Delete+1
DeleteItaly among top markets for Ryanair from Croatia but not even in top 10 for Croatia Airlines...
ReplyDeleteWell they fly Rome via Split and Dubrovnik. What do you expect?
DeleteThey cannot fill airplane in Zagreb with their prices.
DeleteWill FR base fifth plane in Zagreb next summer?
ReplyDeleteI think it's unlikely. I think it also depends on whether Zagreb Airport extends some of the incentives.
DeleteThey do not need to extend anything. Incentives are there already and if you have growth you have discount, simple as that.
DeleteThere is a five-year time limit.
DeleteBut next year they only enter the fourth
DeleteGreat news if they station one more jet in Dubrovnik. We could expect some 8 new routes.
ReplyDeleteThey did a very good job this year so I think another 737 MAX is coming to Dubrovnik next summer for sure.
DeleteThe three planes are already needed according to the current published timetable. Not many fre slots left.. I think 2-3 new routes ex Dubrovnik. Maybe from other bases.
DeleteIt's really amazing how quickly FR has expanded in Zagreb.
ReplyDeleteThanks to Croatia Airlines, there were loads of gaps in the market. For example, Zagreb had no leisure routes at all.
DeleteCroatia Airlines doesn't even fly to Rome directly from Zagreb. It's an absolute disgrace.
DeleteThis has more to do with Croatia Airlines' failure than Ryanair's success.
ReplyDeleteYes and no. Ryanair is known for destroying carriers so...
DeleteAny airline with decent management could destroy OU
DeleteRyanair destroying carriers? Which carriers?
DeleteHow much does Ryanair receive in various incentives, deals with tourist authorities etc in Croatia?
ReplyDeleteGod only knows
DeleteIt's all public information.
DeleteIn Zagreb they follow the incentive model with discounts on airport fees. In Dubrovnik and Zadar they get money from the Croatian Tourist Board.
In Split they get nothing. In Osijek they get a little bit of money from the local authority and in Rijeka and Pula I think they also get nothing but airport fees are favourable.
I'm sure they get nothing in Dubrovnik even though DBV said Ryanair gets support for its base and especially winter flights.
DeleteIt is ironic how they point out they do not receive state funds like OU, then you have them taking numerous other incentives from local authorities, airports, tourist organizations ... and often blackmailing airports
DeleteIt is not ironic, it is the truth. By the way, Croatia Airlines receives not only millions of euros from the government but also millions of euros over the years from tourist boards, especially for its Split and Osijek flights. And it could have gotten the same discounts as Ryanair in Zagreb.
DeleteWow
ReplyDeleteCroatia has such a great numbers on many airports, Zagreb, Zadar, Split, Dubrovnik... Bravo!
ReplyDeleteJust because Ryanair is the biggest, it certainly doesn't make it the best. Ryanair is one of the worst Airlines in the world! It's downfall will come one day soon. It had only managed to stay profitable by expanding and expanding.
ReplyDeleteHow can the airline that carries 200 million passengers per year be one of the worst airlines in the world?
DeleteGo and fly with Ryanair, and you will see what I mean.
DeleteI have flown with Ryanair, thank you very much. As have 200 million people this year. So your comment is nonsense.
DeleteI am flying with Ryanair too, and for me, one of the worst airlines is definitely not Ryanair
Deletenot 200 mil people, but pax. That is maybe 50-80 milion people max....
DeleteCan't wait to see what Ryanair will add from Zagreb and Dubrovnik next year. Could we see more new routes from Zadar too?
ReplyDeleteThey have so many rputes from ZAD. I think over 40.
Delete*routes
DeleteActually Ryanair has 53 routes in Zadar.
DeleteThat's really impressive
DeleteA 4th based plane, especially in high season is a possibility for ZAD. The airport lacks routes to France, Norway and Spain especially. Lets be honest OU won't offer anything new.
DeleteJust put on sale FCO-ZAD
DeleteI love it when these LCCs include the value of their planes as an 'investment' in the market
ReplyDeleteIt sounds ridiculous but technically it is true.
DeleteThey have allocated capital in the country, and the price tag of the airplanes is the value of the capital.
DeleteWhen all four planes cross borders in a day investment falls to 0 and by evening back to 100%.
DeleteYou understand precisely nothing about accounting.
DeleteI wonder why Croatia Airlines has not accused Dubrovnik Airport with unfair competition and discrimination publicly? Remember that three years ago, it accused Zagreb Airport over the media, even though it has been found out that Croatia Airlines had approved the incentives leading Ryanair to launch a base at Zagreb months ago. Is it because of the ownership issue?
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteIt is because they wanted to be protected in Zagreb forever. Dubrovnik they already lost and gave up on.
DeleteWhat can Croatia Airlines realistically do at this point?
ReplyDeleteThey better do something because Ryanair ain't going away any time soon.
DeleteLook for niche destinations, improve on board experience, better time, short connection time etc.
DeleteLower prices to attract more customers, reschedule flights so that connections can be made more easily, make more use of being a Star Alliance airline, fly more efficient planes, stop flying empty flights on routes that make no sense, launch new destinations. There is actually a lot.
DeleteThey haven't done anything worthwhile in 35 years, why start now?
DeleteBecause they were heavily protected for 35 years. Now they actually have to do something just to minimise losses.
DeleteA new management would help.
DeleteOU can paint their planes to Ryan air / Lauda air colours and just wait at tarmac.....
DeleteGood luck Croatia Airlines. Better days are ahead.
ReplyDeleteYes, but for FR
DeleteFR relaunch FCO - ZAD next year
ReplyDeleteAnd PMO-ZAG is confirmed! The fake news artist can now claim he was right.
DeleteDidn't this site report PMO 20 days ago?
Deletehttps://www.exyuaviation.com/2024/10/ryanair-plans-new-italy-service-from.html
DeleteOf course but the self proclaimed expert plagurized it
DeleteNothing new for him
DeleteIdiots are managing Croatia Airlines. Thanks to the HDZ party. Shame!!!
ReplyDeleteYep
DeleteI honestly do not understand why the Croatian government even gave RyanAir permission to fly in our country! All they do is steal profits from the State.
ReplyDeleteYou are clueless. FR can do as they please, it is called the real world and Capitalism, not Communist protectionism.
Delete