Croatian Aviation reports that two Israeli airlines plan to establish direct flights from Tel Aviv to Dubrovnik and Zagreb at the end of this month and at the beginning of May.
Arkia Israel Airlines has announced that it will establish a direct line between Tel Aviv and Dubrovnik from April 23, 2021. The line will operate twice a week, on Mondays and Fridays. It will be operated by E195 aircraft.
In previous years, Arkia operated on a regular route to Rijeka, even using B757 aircraft, but the line last worked in the summer of 2018.
On the other hand, the national airline, El Al Israel Airlines, is currently offering tickets on a regular route between Tel Aviv and Zagreb from May 4 this year. Only one flight per week has been announced for the beginning of May, and a total of three flights a week on this route should be available in the second half of May, every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.
Before the outbreak of the global pandemic, El Al operated seasonally on this route, using B757 aircraft (pictured), and on several occasions, the B747 also came to Zagreb. In the meantime, the company retired all B747 aircraft in the fleet, and currently, B737-800 aircraft are planned for Zagreb. The company currently has 15 aircraft of this type in its fleet, and the capacity varies depending on the configuration – from 166 to 189 seats.
Given that the Israeli population’s vaccination rate is extremely high and that the demand for tourist travel is growing significantly, it is not surprising that these two carriers have announced they will resume lines to Croatia.
In the summer season of 2019, Croatia Airlines operated seasonally on the line between Zagreb and Tel Aviv. It was the only night rotation of the Croatian national airline, departing around midnight from Zagreb. It is unknown whether the company will resume traffic on this line in the summer season this year.
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