A Guide to Wizz Air

Summary

Wizz Air (legally named as Wizz Air Hungary) is a Hungarian-based low-cost airline which was established in September 2003. The carrier was founded by the former CEO of Malev Hungarian Airlines, József Váradi, and has the American private equity company, Indigo Partners, as its lead investor. It generally operates its all Airbus fleet from a mixture of primary, secondary and regional airports to reduce costs and fees.

The carrier’s first commercial service was flown on 19 May 2014 from Katowice International Airport, Poland to London Luton. In February 2015, Wizz Air became a public limited company and started trading on the London Stock Exchange.

In 2019, Wizz Air carried 40 million passengers, however, during the following year, the Covid pandemic lead to an almost 60% reduction in passenger numbers to 16.6 million. However, the pandemic was viewed as an opportunity by Wizz Air, leading to the opening of 260 new routes and 13 new bases.

Wizz Air UK

Airbus A321-231 G-WUKK of Wizz Air UK (Anna Zvereva, distributed under a CC BY-SA 2.0 Licence)

Wizz Air UK began operations using British-registered aircraft in March 2018. Based at London Luton Airport, the subsidiary was initially established to take advantage of slots released when Monarch Airlines went into administration in October 2017 as well as operating UK-bound flights previously flown by Wizz Air. Its existence ensures that Wizz Air retains full market access to the UK following Brexit.

Wizz Air Abu Dhabi

Airbus A321neo A6-WZB of Wizz Air Abu Dhabi on the apron at Abu Dhabi Airport (Wizz Air Hungary Ltd., distributed under a CC BY-SA 4.0 Licence)

Wizz Air Abu Dhabi was founded in December 2019 as a joint venture with former Abu Dhabi Developmental Holding Company, ADDH . Acting as Wizz Air’s UAE subsidiary, it provides low-cost flights from Abu Dhabi to 31 destinations in the Middle East, Europe and Africa.

Wizz Air Malta

Airbus A321neo 9H-WAC of Wizz Air Malta (Kenzel2, distributed under a CC BY-SA 4.0 Licence)

Wizz Air Malta began operating on 27 September 2022, flying Maltese-registered aircraft. While there are financial benefits for Wizz Air from registering and basing some of its aircraft in Malta, it also provides strategic opportunities for expanding its services in West Europe and Africa.

Wizz Air has also had a number of unsuccessful subsidiaries including Wizz Air Bulgaria which was launched in 2005 but ended operations in 2011; Wizz Air Ukraine which was established in 2008 but closed in 2015; and Wizz Air Romania, a planned subsidiary which never started operations.

The Wizz Air Group operates over 600 routes to 180+ destinations (including seasonal only).

Wizz Air’s Bases

Airbus A321neo G-WUKS of Wizz Air UK at Tallinn Airport, Estonia (Anna Zvereva, distributed under a CC BY-SA 2.0 Licence)

Wizz Air (Hungary) and its subsidiaries currently operate from the following bases:

Albania:
Tirana International Airport Nene Tereza

Austria:
Vienna International Airport

Bosnia and Herzegovina:
Sarajevo International Airport
Tuzla International Airport

Bulgaria:
Burgas Airport
Sofia Airport
Varna Airport

Cyprus:
Larnaca International Airport

Georgia:
Kutaisi International Airport

Hungary:
Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport
Debrecen International Airport

Italy:
Catania-Fontanarossa Airport
Milan Malpensa Airport
Naples International Airport
Falcone Borsellino Airport (Palermo)
Leonard da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport (Rome)

Kyrgyzstan:
Manas International Airport (Bishkek) (from June 2023)

Lithuania:
Vilnius Airport

Luxembourg:
Luxembourg Airport (from June 2023)

Malta:
Malta International Airport (Luqa)

North Macedonia:
Skopje International Airport

Poland:
Gdansk Lech Walesa Airport
Katowice Airport
Krakow John Paul II International Airport
Warsaw Chopin Airport
Copernicus Airport Wroclaw

Romania:
Henri Coanda International Airport (Bucharest)
Cluj International Airport
Craiova International Airport
lasi International Airport
Sibiu International Airport
Suceava International Airport
Timisoara Traian Vuia International Airport

Serbia :
Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport

Sri Lanka:
Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (Hambantota) (from September 2023)

United Arab Emirates:
Abu Dhabi International Airport

United Kingdom:
Edinburgh Airport
Gatwick Airport
Luton Airport

Wizz Air Fleets

Airbus A321neo HA-LZM at Birmingham Airport (Alec Wilson, distributed under a CC BY-SA 2.0 Licence)

Wizz Air (Hungary) and its subsidiaries’ fleets currently consist of 43 Airbus A320-200s, 6 Airbus A320neos, 41 Airbus A321-200s and 80 Airbus A321neo aircraft. There are approximately 382 aircraft on order including 47 Airbus A321LXRs. The Wizz Air Group aims to have a fleet of 500 aircraft by the end of the decade.