Losses double for Croatia Airlines

In the third quarter of the year the Croatia Airlines Group reported a loss of 22.37 million Kuna (3.15 million Euros), which is twice as much when compared to the same quarter last year when the loss totalled 11.42 million Kuna (1.55 million Euros). In the first 9 months of 2008 the national carrier of Croatia had a total loss of 21.55 million Kuna (3.02 million Euros) due to the record prices of oil which increased expenditure which couldn’t be covered by the significant increase in operational profit which increased by 162 million Kuna (22.77 million Euros) compared to last year. The total income increased by 14.25% compared to last year, created by the increase in the number of transported passengers. Income from tickets sold inside Croatia increased by 37.12% compared last year while international sales increased by 3.4%.

However, these positive income figures could not cover the rising expenditures the airline had which are 17.97% higher than last year. Only operational costs are 19.33% higher than last year which is the reason why expenditure has increased significantly. Croatia Airlines hoped that ticket sales would significantly increase through the purchase of 2 new Bombardier Q400 aircraft and the sale of 2 ATR42s however this was not achieved. In 2008 Croatia Airlines shares decreased by 65% on the Zagreb Stock Exchange.