Windrose Airlines, the Ukrainian airline based at Kyiv Boryspil International Airport which absorbed some of Monarch's fleet, is launching flights to Croatia this October. Windrose originally planned to launch the route this summer but had canceled this plan due to the travel restrictions imposed as a result of the pandemic. Now, Windrose is selling tickets again for this route.
The new route from Kyiv to Zagreb
As is visible from the booking system of Windrose Airlines, the Ukrainian airline has restored its plans to launch the first direct flights between Ukraine and Croatia. The first flight will operate on Sunday 4th October, departing Kyiv Boryspil International Airport for Zagreb Airport.
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The route launch was also confirmed as "expected" by the Ambassador of Ukraine to Croatia, Vasyl Kyrylych. He posted a tweet last week outlining the launch plan for Sunday 4th October too. In his tweet, he also stated that coronavirus has "confirmed the importance of direct flights" for Ukraine and Croatia.
Judging by his statement, it would appear that the pandemic has had the opposite effect in the Croatia-Ukraine aviation market as compared to the impact it has had elsewhere. Instead of route cancellations and frequency cuts, this route is being launched.
The plans for flight 7W766
Windrose will operate flights between Kyiv and Zagreb under the flight code 7W766. This is the same flight number that the airline had originally assigned for this route, which was due to launch during this year's summer season. Originally, the route was scheduled as a three-weekly service.
After the pandemic broke out and countries across the world imposed travel restrictions, Windrose delayed the route launch for the winter season this year. However, soon afterward, the airline pulled the flights from its booking engine, indicating that the route is completely canceled for an indefinite time period. Flights are now back on sale, albeit with reduced seat capacity and a lower frequency than was originally scheduled.
From Windrose's booking engine, the following details are visible about this new Ukraine - Croatia route:
- Flight 7W766 will depart Kyiv Boryspil International Airport (KBP) at 11:30, to arrive in Franjo Tuđman Airport Zagreb (ZAG) at 12:40.
- The return flight will then leave Zagreb at 13:25, to arrive in Kyiv at 16:20. It will carry the code 7W767.
Windrose will operate these flights with its Embraer ERJ145 aircraft, every Wednesday and Sunday.
Why is this important for Zagreb Airport?
The launch of this new route comes as important news for Zagreb Airport. The airport has not had a single new route launched there this year, and airlines have been leaving it rapidly even before the pandemic started negatively affecting the aviation industry.
For example, before the pandemic, Zagreb Airport lost services from Eurowings and CSA Czech Airlines, while Korean Air, Emirates, and Swiss cut frequencies or converted their routes to seasonal.
Do you think Windrose Airlines will follow through on this plan and launch this new route between Kyiv and Zagreb? Let us know what you think of Windrose's plan in the comments below.