Croatia Airlines’ lifeline route between Mostar and Zagreb has been given fresh certainty for 2026 after the Croatian government renewed a key public service obligation contract and confirmed new funding for the service. The decision secures three weekly flights between southern Bosnia and Herzegovina’s largest city and the Croatian capital, underpinning Mostar’s fragile air connectivity and strengthening regional ties just as Croatia’s flag carrier accelerates a broader network and fleet renewal plan.

Government Funding Locks In 2026 Operations

The Croatian government has approved a funding package worth 1.75 million euros for 2026 in support of air connectivity for the City of Mostar, including a renewed public service obligation, or PSO, contract with Croatia Airlines for the Mostar–Zagreb route. Of that amount, 950,000 euros is earmarked specifically to subsidize the three-times-weekly service between Mostar and Zagreb, ensuring it remains financially viable over the coming year despite relatively modest passenger volumes and a still-developing market.

The funds were approved at a cabinet session in early February 2026 following a proposal by the Ministry of Sea, Transport and Infrastructure. The PSO renewal follows similar arrangements implemented in 2024 and 2025, when Mostar Airport selected Croatia Airlines through public tenders to operate subsidized flights to Zagreb under a model designed to guarantee basic connectivity on routes deemed socially and economically important but commercially challenging.

While the support to Mostar does not formally fall under Croatia’s domestic PSO framework for internal routes, the structure of the agreement mirrors those contracts. It guarantees capacity on a thin regional link that might otherwise be at risk, particularly outside the peak summer season. For Mostar, which has struggled for years to attract and retain scheduled services, the renewed backing is central to its strategy of positioning itself as a small but reliable regional gateway.

Passenger Numbers Justify Continued Support

Traffic figures from the past two years appear to validate the decision to maintain subsidies. Croatia Airlines carried a combined total of around 21,900 passengers on the Mostar–Zagreb route across 2024 and 2025, according to government and industry data, with demand edging up year-on-year. In 2025 alone, the airline transported just over 11,000 passengers on the route, a 1.6 percent increase compared with 2024, despite operating with relatively conservative frequencies.

The service is typically flown by De Havilland Canada Dash 8-Q400 turboprops configured with 76 seats. That capacity has proved appropriate for the market, though the average annual load factor in 2025 hovered around half-full, underlining the importance of financial support if the route is to be maintained on a year-round basis. Almost all rotations in 2025 were performed with the Dash 8-Q400, with only isolated flights operated by Croatia Airlines’ newer Airbus A220-100 and a single A319.

For policymakers in Zagreb and local authorities in Mostar, those numbers demonstrate a steady, if unspectacular, base of demand from business travelers, diaspora passengers and tourists connecting via the Croatian capital to the airline’s wider European network. Without subsidies, however, the thin margins and seasonality of demand would likely make it difficult to sustain such a schedule, particularly given the volatility that has long characterized Bosnia and Herzegovina’s aviation market.

Mostar Airport’s Strategy and Regional Impact

Mostar Airport has made the Zagreb link the backbone of its development strategy, leveraging the Croatian hub to plug into a much wider range of European destinations. Local officials see the PSO-backed route as a stepping stone towards building a more diversified route map, including possible future links to Western Europe and key diaspora markets. In previous tenders, the airport and city authorities explicitly framed the Zagreb flights as an anchor service designed to raise the airport’s profile with other carriers.

City leaders have argued that consistent connectivity to a major regional hub is essential for attracting investment, supporting the tourism sector and improving mobility for residents in Herzegovina. The renewed contract therefore has significance that goes beyond pure passenger numbers, especially in a market where road travel through mountainous terrain and border crossings can be slow and unpredictable, and where rail services, though recently revived between Ploče, Mostar and Sarajevo, do not yet offer the frequency or speed of air travel for longer connections.

The decision also carries a symbolic dimension. Croatia’s ongoing financial involvement in maintaining flights from Mostar is often framed by both governments as an example of cross-border cooperation, reinforcing economic and cultural ties between Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Officials in Mostar have highlighted the route as evidence that the city is no longer an aviation backwater, but a functioning link in the wider regional transport network.

Croatia Airlines’ Role as Regional Connector

For Croatia Airlines, the renewal of the Mostar PSO contract is consistent with its long-standing role as a regional connector in the Western Balkans. The carrier has traditionally mixed commercially strong seasonal leisure routes with subsidized or strategically important services that bind together smaller markets in the region. In this context, Mostar–Zagreb sits alongside other niche routes that feed into the airline’s growing network out of the Croatian capital.

The route’s scheduling is designed to maximize connectivity. Current timetables typically offer morning and afternoon departures between Mostar and Zagreb on select weekdays, providing opportunities for same-day onward connections from Zagreb to destinations such as Frankfurt, Amsterdam, London, Paris and a growing portfolio of other European cities. In practical terms, that means travelers from Herzegovina can reach major European capitals with a single connection, a powerful selling point for both business and leisure passengers.

Croatia Airlines’ willingness to keep operating the Mostar route, even at relatively low load factors, reflects not just the financial cushion of the PSO model but also the airline’s broader ambition to strengthen Zagreb’s role as a regional hub. The carrier and Croatian tourism bodies have consistently emphasized the importance of using the national airline’s network to channel visitors into the wider region, including neighboring Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Subsidies and the Wider PSO Debate

The renewed funding for Mostar–Zagreb comes as Croatia’s entire PSO system is under scrutiny. While the Mostar arrangement is technically separate from the domestic PSO scheme covering internal links such as Osijek to Dubrovnik or Split, the commitment of 950,000 euros to a cross-border route has attracted attention at a time when tenders for the next cycle of domestic PSO contracts have been running behind schedule.

Some commentators in the Croatian aviation sector have questioned whether expanding subsidized connectivity beyond the country’s borders should take priority when several domestic routes remain heavily reliant on state support for their own survival. The Ministry of Sea, Transport and Infrastructure has responded by stressing that the Mostar package is framed as part of international development cooperation and support for aviation safety and infrastructure, alongside the route subsidy itself.

Critics and supporters alike agree, however, that the Mostar case illustrates a broader tension in European aviation policy between market forces and the social and economic need to maintain links to smaller or more remote communities. For Bosnia and Herzegovina, whose own internal PSO framework is still evolving, the partnership with Croatia offers a shortcut to stable connectivity via an established regional carrier and hub, even as it raises complex questions about long-term funding and competitive neutrality.

A notable feature of the 2026 package is that roughly 800,000 euros of the total 1.75 million euros will be directed not to flight operations, but to airport safety, security and infrastructure improvements at Mostar. Croatian authorities have indicated that these funds will support projects related to civil aviation safety and protection, effectively helping Mostar upgrade facilities and equipment so that it can better handle regular international scheduled traffic.

Improved infrastructure is seen as critical if the airport is to attract additional routes. Upgraded security and airside systems can reduce operational bottlenecks, enhance reliability and make the airport more attractive to other carriers considering new services. Better facilities also have a direct impact on the passenger experience, an increasingly important factor as airports compete for airlines and travelers in a region where several secondary airports are vying for similar traffic.

The subsidy framework also leaves room for possible expansion of Mostar’s network beyond Zagreb. Government documents and industry reports note that the 2026 support package makes provisions for a route linking Belgrade and Mostar, though no firm frequencies or launch dates have yet been announced. Such a service, if realized, would connect Mostar not only to Croatia’s capital but also to Serbia’s main hub, deepening the city’s integration into regional air networks and offering new one-stop connections across Europe through Belgrade.

Fleet Renewal and Network Growth at Croatia Airlines

The Mostar PSO renewal coincides with a transformative period for Croatia Airlines, which is in the midst of a multi-year fleet renewal program centered on the Airbus A220. The airline has already begun phasing in new A220-300 and A220-100 aircraft to replace its aging Airbus A319s, A320s and, ultimately, its Dash 8-Q400 turboprops. The carrier expects to operate a significantly modernized fleet by the late 2020s, with the A220 becoming its primary aircraft type.

In parallel, Croatia Airlines is expanding its European network and boosting capacity. For the 2026 summer season, the airline plans more than 19,000 flights, an increase compared with 2025, and expects to offer roughly 2.4 million seats systemwide. Zagreb will be connected to more than 20 international destinations, including major hubs and popular leisure cities, with Mostar explicitly included in the planned network as one of the spokes feeding into the Croatian capital.

Although the Zagreb–Mostar route is currently operated mostly by the Dash 8-Q400, the arrival of additional A220s could open the door to occasional upgrades in capacity or schedule flexibility, depending on demand and operational needs. The airline has already deployed the A220 on an ad hoc basis on the route, signaling its readiness to integrate the new fleet into even its smaller markets when conditions allow.

What the Renewal Means for Travelers and Tourism

For travelers in both Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia, the guaranteed continuation of Mostar–Zagreb flights in 2026 delivers a welcome dose of predictability. Residents of Mostar and the wider Herzegovina region can continue to plan business trips, family visits and medical or educational journeys via Zagreb with confidence that the route will remain on the timetable throughout the year. For Croatian travelers, the flights offer a convenient way to reach Mostar’s historic old town and religious tourism sites without tackling long road journeys.

Tourism stakeholders are likely to view the renewal as a platform for further growth rather than a final destination. The route’s performance to date suggests room for development, particularly if local tourism boards in Herzegovina and Croatian partners in Zagreb collaborate on joint marketing campaigns that package city breaks and pilgrimage travel with simple, one-stop connections from key European markets via Zagreb. As Mostar enhances its airport infrastructure and Croatia Airlines continues to build up its hub, the PSO-backed service provides the essential backbone on which that ambition can rest.

For now, the renewed contract ensures that, despite ongoing debates around PSO policy and airline subsidies, one of the region’s most fragile but strategically important air links will continue to operate. In a corner of Europe where geography, borders and market dynamics often conspire against seamless connectivity, the Mostar–Zagreb flights stand as a small but significant example of how targeted public support can keep critical routes in the air.