Croatia reports 13.8 million Euro loss

Reflections on the first quarter

With financial results from the first quarter slowly being reported by EX-YU airlines and airports, the picture seems far from rosy. Croatia Airlines registered a 100.3 million Kunas net loss (13.8 million Euros) in the first three months of the year, compared to 5.3 million Euros last year, the “Croatian Times” reports. Total revenue in the first quarter stood at 274.4 million Kunas (37.8 million Euros), down compared to 335.9 million Kunas (46.3 million Euros) last year. Total expenditures were increased from 374.1 million Kunas (51.5 million Euros) in 2009 to 374.8 million Kunas (51.6 million Euros) in 2010.

In April, the CEO of Croatia Airlines, Ivan Mišetić, said that the Croatian national carrier plans to halve last year’s losses which amounted to 199 million Kunas (27.4 million Euros). This was the highest loss in the company’s history. Earlier this year, Mišetić created a stir when he suggested that Croatia Airlines’ only savior from collapse was privatization. This was followed by rumors that the German Lufthansa, a long time partner of Croatia Airlines, might just buy out the national carrier.