Wizz Air
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| Wizz Air | ||
|---|---|---|
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| IATA W6 |
ICAO WZZ |
Callsign WIZZAIR |
| Founded | 2003 | |
| Hubs | Boryspil International Airport Katowice International Airport Poznań-Ławica Airport Budapest Ferihegy International Airport Warsaw Frederic Chopin Airport Bucharest Băneasa Airport Sofia Airport Gdańsk Lech Wałęsa Airport Cluj-Napoca International Airport |
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| Fleet size | 17 (+80 orders) | |
| Destinations | 32 | |
| Headquarters | Vecsés, Hungary | |
| Key people | József Váradi | |
| Website: wizzair.com | ||
Wizz Air is a Hungarian[1][2] low-cost airline with headquarters in Vecsés, Hungary. Focusing on the markets of Central Europe the company has operational bases at the Sofia Airport, Bulgaria; Budapest Ferihegy International Airport, Hungary; Gdańsk Lech Wałęsa Airport, Katowice International Airport, Poznań-Ławica Airport and Warsaw Frederic Chopin Airport in Poland; Bucharest Băneasa Airport and Cluj-Napoca International Airport, in Romania; Boryspil International Airport, in Ukraine.
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[edit] History
The airline was established in September 2003. The lead investor is Indigo Partners, an American private equity firm[citation needed] specializing in transportation investments. The first flight was made on 19 May 2004 from Katowice, 19 days after Poland and Hungary entered the European Union and the single European aviation market. The airline carried 250,000 passengers in its first three and a half months, almost 1.4 million passengers in the first year of operations and to date,10 million passengers. In 2007 Wizz Air carried 2.8 million passengers on its Polish routes and is planning to achieve 10 million more passengers in the next 18 months.
Too low quality service might hinder achieving these goals.
The airline's CEO and chairman is József Váradi, former CEO of Malév Hungarian Airlines. The company is registered in London with operating subsidiaries in Poland, Hungary and Bulgaria. Wizz Air Bulgaria was established in September 2005[3].
Wizzair has been voted the best low-fare airline in Poland by the readers of pasazer.com, the largest travel news portal in Poland.
József Váradi, Chief Executive Officer of Wizz Air, won the Ernst & Young award of the 'Brave Innovator' in 2007. The prize recognized the break through in the airline business in Hungary and the region, the business model and the business conduct of Wizz Air.
[edit] Service Quality
As a result of low cost, Wizz Air delivers much lower service quality than most air lines.
Wizz Air reportedly cancel flights shortly before departure. It is nearly impossible for customers to reach Wizz Air, and only by premium priced call centres.
Wizz Air announce it takes currently more than 30 days to process customer complaint mails.
[edit] Services/destinations
- Further information: Wizz Air destinations
WizzAir started new services between Katowice and London Gatwick in 2008[4]. Winter destinations from Warsaw are Milan Bergamo and Grenoble. In January 2008, flights also started from Gdansk to Goteborg, Bournemouth and Coventry.
In summer 2008, WizzAir will restart the summer only services from Katowice and Budapest to Barcelona (GRO), as well as a new weekly service to Girona from Gdańsk. Other summer services from Budapest are Crete-Heraklion, Corfu, Bourgas and Varna, from Katowice to Crete-Heraklion and Bourgas, Warsaw to Corfu and Bourgas. They will also restart the three-times weekly service from London Luton to Bourgas.
Note however that flights might be cancelled, challenging passengers planning.
[edit] Wizz Air Bulgaria
- Further information: Wizz Air Bulgaria destinations
The Bulgarian division of Wizz Air has been awarded licences to begin new services to Greece, Turkey and Moldova. At the moment Wizz Air Bulgaria operates flights from Sofia to London, Rome and Dortmund, and seasonal services from the United Kingdom to Bourgas.
From 26 July 2008, Wizz Air will offer new destinations from Sofia to Varna, Barcelona, Valencia, Milan, Izmir, Brussels and will expand the number of flights to London, Rome and Dortmund by commissioning another Airbus A320 to serve the new routes.
[edit] Fleet
As of March 2008, the Wizz Air fleet includes:
- 17[5] Airbus A320-200 (plus 80 on order)
16 aircraft operate under Wizz Air Hungary and one for Wizz Air Bulgaria. It has firm orders for 80 Airbus A320s. [6] The airline intends to operate 90+ aircraft in 5-7 years. The fleet is easily recognisable in airports due to its white, pink and purple colors. All its A320s are powered by International Aero Engines V2500 engines, even those to be leased from GECAS. The 99.5% technical dispatch reliability, which is well above the world average, is ensured by the Lufthansa Technik maintenance organization. [7]
On 10 October 2007, Wizz Air confirmed an order for a further 50 Airbus A320 aircraft bringing its total commitments of that type up to 80 and an option for further 25 A320s.[8]
[edit] Pricing
Wizz Air is a low-cost airline[9], passengers pay the fare plus taxes and charges which can include a fuel surcharge, insurance and facility charge, air duty charge, passenger service charge, and security tax. These additional taxes and charges can equate to as much as 55 euros one-way. There is an additional 3 euro charge per flight per passenger for ordering via the web using a credit card and a 5-euro charge per booking for ordering over the phone.
Contacting Wizz Air is done by premium priced call centers.
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ Hungarian Wizz Air Opens Fifth Hub in Poland. Business Week. Retrieved on 2008-03-20.
- ^ Fliers reap benefits in Eastern Europe. International Herald Tribune. Retrieved on 2008-03-20.
- ^ Airliner World, January 2007.
- ^ Wizz Air launches London Gatwick – Katowice flight (2007-08-09). Retrieved on 2008-05-05.
- ^ Wizz Air
- ^ Airbus orders
- ^ Wizz Air Sale and Lease Back with GECAS
- ^ "Wizz Air orders 50 more Airbus A320s" Fligt Global, 10/10/2007
- ^ Wizz Air offering new biz fare. CNN. Retrieved on 2008-03-20.
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