Zadar Airport has overtaken its record 2018 annual passenger result by early September, handling over 605.792 travellers. It anticipates welcoming between 780.000 and 800.000 passengers by year’s end. Growth is expected to stand between 25% and 30%. The impressive figures come on the back of Ryanair's major summer expansion from the coastal city. Apart from the eight new routes introduced by the budget airline, the airport saw easyJet double its capacity, while Laudamotion, Transavia, Condor, Air Serbia and Iberia introduced new services, for a total of fifteen new routes. This summer, some 25 airlines maintained operations to 37 points across the continent.
The greatest portion of passengers came from Germany and the United Kingdom, while Frankfurt was the busiest route, followed by London Stansted, Charleroi, Stuttgart, Cologne and Dublin. “Generally, all airlines saw a good occupancy rate. For comparisons sake, Ryanair carried almost double the number of passengers to Frankfurt than Croatia Airlines. It is true that they have more flights on the route but Ryanair’s average cabin load factor amounts to 97% compared to Croatia Airlines’ 71%. At the same time, Greece’s Aegean Airlines, which had a load factor of over 70% on its route from Athens last year, discontinued its flights”, the airport’s spokesman, Nikola Barać, said.
Zadar Airport will initiate a seventy million euro expansion and overhaul of its facilities in order to enable it to handle long haul flights. It will become the latest airport in the country, following Zagreb, Dubrovnik and Split, to carry out major upgrades. They include the overhaul of the runway and its extension by 700 metres, as well as the expansion of the terminal building and apron. The Croatian government will assist with the financing. Zadar Airport's General Manager, Josip Klišmanić, noted that necessary project documentation will be obtained during 2019 in order for work on the project to commence as soon as possible. No firm timeframe has been given as to when construction work could be completed.
It's impressive them surpassing last year's result this early. Well done!
ReplyDeleteYep I think the first ex-Yu airport to already surpass last year.
DeleteZadar is benefiting from Split's inability to handle more planes (because of lack of aircraft parking spaces) big time.
ReplyDeleteIt's not true. Most of ZAD growth, as mentioned in the article, comes from RyanAir wich does not have strong connections with Split due to the Split Airport price policy.
DeleteWill it overtake Pula this year?
ReplyDeletePula is doing well this year too. We will see.
DeleteIn a few years they will reach a million.
ReplyDeleteIt could happen as early as 2021.
DeleteIt will all depend on Ryanair.
DeleteIt's good to see that Easy jet is also expanding in Zadar so the airport isn't completely reliant on one airline for the majority of its growth.
DeleteSo how come everyone sees the benefit in having easyJet or Ryanair but ZAG doesn't?!
DeleteZAG market is better served by prestigious full service carriers.
DeleteYes, we see. That's why while other Croatian airports are booming, Zagreb is barely growing.
Delete@An.10.08 Stop with prestige BS
Delete@An.09.44 We all know they are protecting OU and not allowing LCC'S there because of OU
Does FR have any year round routes to ZAD?
ReplyDeleteNo, all are seasonal.
DeleteAre all routes being maintained next summer too?
DeleteI believe so.
Delete"It is true that they have more flights on the route but Ryanair’s average cabin load factor amounts to 97% compared to Croatia Airlines’ 71%."
ReplyDeleteOuch
And FR flies from Hahn while OU from Main.
DeleteWhich shows that customers on ZAD-Frankfurt don't care about the airport but costs. OU should have gone for Hahn as well.
DeleteI assume the passengers flying ZAD-FRA on OU are mostly transfers onto Lufthansa.
DeleteActually, RyanAir flies from ZAD to Frankfurt (FRA) airport, not Hahn.
DeleteCould long haul flights really work from Zadar? And from where?
ReplyDeleteChina? Wasn't there an idea to introduce charters from there a couple of year ago.
DeleteYeah the only problem is that the airport doesn't have a long enough runway and wide enough taxiways to handle widebodies.
DeleteIn the case of ZAD that problem can be solved in no time as the land around the airport is not being used for anything and the state can easily use it for runway extension.
DeleteBut didn't Zadar handle widebodies in the past? I remember some Ilyushin landing there.
DeleteWidebodies can land but I think there are some weight restrictions, and not sure about takeoffs.
DeleteChina-Zadar really makes no sense.
DeleteZAD will continue to grow on high rates for the years to come as it will eat out good part of the potential growth at SPU. Also some of the lines currently flying to SPU will likely move over to ZAD. This is good in fact as it will help distribute the load in the Dalmatia region and will enable SPU to offer better quality of the service to its end users. Of all the airports on the coast ZAD has the largest potential and technically it is in the best position to anticipate growth. In fact it is the only airport in Croatia to have two runways!
ReplyDeleteAgree, There are very good prospects for them to grow in the future.
DeleteI would expect this airport to double its 2019 result in no time. It is strategically placed to cover the region from Rijeka to Makarska along the coast cause it is very close to the highway. With a future development of the Križišće - Žuta Lokva it will become even better positioned. Already there is a planned investment in the new terminal. Thus it has all prerequisites to be one of the top two airports along the Croatian coast.
DeleteTerminal looks modern.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting that Zadar didn't work out for Aegean with 70% LF. Did they use the Q400 on this route?
ReplyDeleteYes
DeleteBecause they could put the plane on another route with better loads. 71% average load factor during only peak high season is not great.
DeleteYes but it was just the first year. They should have given it a chance.
DeleteBravo Hrvatska!
ReplyDeleteFor what? For flag carrier having less than 20% of the market share? For extremely poor inland connectivity (except ZAG) despite PSO and EU? For no long-haul from ZAG to the US 30 years after we had it? For no long-haul to China despite all the numbers and Chinese Market strength? For feeding LH and Star at its hubs instead doing what LO is doing? For flag carrier so good it can't be privatised for years in several attempts and will be injected with our money once again? For no possibility to fly LCC from ZAG? What for exactly bravo out of all these?
DeleteWhy are you so bitter? The state has developed air traffic in a smart way using other carriers to bring pax. Croatia Airlines is strategically important to secure the connectivity for Croatian citizens and they need to be supported. But Croatia Airlines can't compete with the big guns as Croatia is a small country. Just have a look at Adria and how Slovenia let it go down the drain.
DeleteI am not bitter at all. I am disappointed. Potential of this country is to have 3 times bigger, better and stronger national carrier. But instead we have extremely inefficient and mismanaged company with over 300 administrative employees in excess, absolutely not capable of serving the purpose it has been created for. If you consider that bitter, it's really time to take your pink glasses off.
DeleteYou seem bitter. The state owned companies can't be profitable or efficient as the privately owned ones. On the other hand if we would privatise everything state owned very likely many people would not be able to use those services at all (e.g. health care). OU is the least of the problems in Croatia and luckily the air transport does not depend on them. They provide some minimal connectivity though and that serves the purpose.
DeleteCan you answer me do you think it's logical what you say :
DeleteIf the connectivity is minimal, how it can serve the purpose?
If the market is big, and has potential, why the company is still state-owned, and why we all pay for its debts instead being long time gone privatized and contributing to state economy?
If you equalize health care with air traffic, do we really have anything more to talk about?
If you think I am bitter, you should check my last pay check LOL !!! I am just sad and disappointed because our beautiful country became the land of lost opportunities, not only in aviation. Because we can do much more and much better but people like you advocating what we have is good enough and sufficient. Well, it's not
After Ryan who is the busiest airline in ZAD? OU or easyjet? Or someone else.
ReplyDeleteI think easyjet.
DeleteIt's Impressive how much Zadar has grown over the last 10 years.
ReplyDeleteYes, good for ZAD, step by step they are developing in the right direction.
DeleteSo in around two years Croatia will have 3 coastal airports handling over 1 million passengers, or 4 airports in the country with million + traffic. Nice.
ReplyDeleteDubrovnik should have 3 million pax this year as well as the Split Airport. Only Zadar is still to reach that million digits
DeleteAny idea when the expansion work will begin?
ReplyDeleteIt would be nice if they showed some renders or plans.
DeleteLet‘s see if PUY or ZAD will have more PAX at the end of the year...
ReplyDeleteGo Zadar, go!
DeleteRealistically Zadar should handle 1 million pax annually given its potential to take a large number of pax away from SPU.
ReplyDeleteImpressive growth, 1 million is very possible if they get around 800.000 this year
ReplyDeleteI flew out last week and even on a Sunday late afternoon with 3 flights and 550 pax made the terminal a nightmare. The small cafe/bar is basic at best. Lots of gaps also exist in the places flights arrive from. Apart from a couple of flights a week from MRS France is a huge gap. Also missing is most of Scandinavia, FR cover Sweden OK, but a few weeks of Norwegian arriving in the early hours of the morning is not good from Oslo. SAS have 3 or more flights some days into Split from ARN, OSL and CPH so it would be realistic for ZAD flights in the furure. Amsterdam is missing, along with Copenhagen and Helsinki. Perhaps more Polish destinations and Scotland.
ReplyDeleteA chance for Finnair seeing as they have been expanding in Croatia.
DeleteHow do the new flights to Belgrade perform ?
ReplyDeleteSurprisingly well. One of the best Croatian destination launches to date.
Delete