Air China will launch a new route connecting Beijing with Zagreb via Bucharest from September 4, giving Croatia its first-ever scheduled air link with the Chinese capital, the carrier confirmed on July 27.
The three-times-weekly service will operate using an Airbus A330-200 aircraft configured with 265 seats, including 18 business class seats in a 2-2-2 layout and 247 economy seats arranged 2-4-2. The route also marks Air China’s return to Bucharest, a market it last served until March 1994.
Flights will make a scheduled three-hour stopover in the Romanian capital in both directions, with total flying time between Beijing and Bucharest running to around 10.5 hours. Air China is also seeking fifth freedom traffic rights on the Bucharest-Zagreb sector, which would allow it to sell tickets solely between the two European capitals, pending regulatory approval.
The launch expands Air China’s European network to 23 destinations. In Central Europe and the Balkans, the carrier already serves Belgrade, Budapest, Vienna and Warsaw. With the new route, Air China becomes the third widebody operator at Zagreb Airport, and only the second East Asian carrier to serve the Croatian capital, after South Korea’s T’way Air.
Zagreb Airport had identified China as a priority market for long-haul expansion earlier this year, alongside the United States, India and Japan. Based on current indirect passenger demand, Shanghai ranks as the airport’s largest unserved Chinese market, followed by Beijing and Guangzhou, according to EX-YU Aviation.
Croatia has grown in popularity among Chinese travellers in recent years, drawing visitors with its coastal tourism, historic cities and access to the wider Adriatic region. Tickets for the new Beijing-Bucharest-Zagreb service are already on sale through Air China’s website.