Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has found himself at the center of a public and political scandal after flying to Croatia on a private jet for an extended weekend shortly after an official visit to Prague, accompanied by a woman whom Slovak media and the opposition describe as his partner.
On October 27, 2026, Fico was in Prague, where he took part in a ceremony with Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš to unveil a monument to Czech-Slovak friendship.
Just three days later, on October 30 — the eve of All Saints’ Day (Dušičky) — opposition MP Alojz Hlina of the SaS party published photos showing Fico and Katarína Szalayová boarding a private plane at Bratislava Airport. The flight (a Pilatus PC-12 with Austrian registration) was heading to Split. Hlina sarcastically wrote that the prime minister “flew to his summer residence in Croatia accompanied by his lawful wife,” even though the woman next to him was not his wife Svetlana Ficová, but Szalayová.
Estimates put the cost of the flight at around €13,000–17,000, depending on whether the aircraft remained at the destination.
Memes and jokes quickly appeared on social media, targeting both the flight itself and the appearance and behavior of Fico’s companion. The opposition (SaS) later claimed it had identified eight private flights since July 2026 totaling approximately €120,000 and announced it would approach the relevant authorities to question the sources of funding.
Fico responded with a video in which he rejected the need to report his private travel to the media. He stated that he has legal income (including compensation from lawsuits against media outlets), has never been a suspect in any economic crime, and can afford both private flights and the purchase of recreational property. He also accused the opposition and “anti-government media” of fueling hatred, recalling the assassination attempt against him in 2024.
