WIZZ AIR ANNOUNCES MAJOR EXPANSION AT LONDON LUTON

RNS Number : 9030W

Wizz Air Holdings PLC

20 November 2017

 

UNDER EMBARGO UNTIL 0700, 20 NOVEMBER 2017

WIZZ AIR ANNOUNCES

MAJOR EXPANSION AT LONDON LUTON

FOUR ADDITIONAL AIRCRAFT

150 NEW LOCAL JOBS

FIVE NEW ROUTES

30 ADDITIONAL FLIGHTS & 11,000 NEW SEATS EVERY WEEK

London, 20 November 2017: Wizz Air, the largest low-cost airline in Central and Eastern Europe today announces a massive expansion at its Luton base, with the addition of four Airbus A320 aircraft to its Luton fleet by June 2018.

The allocation of four more Airbus A320 aircraft, each equipped with 186 seats, brings the total number of aircraft in Wizz Air's Luton fleet to five, with a combined value of $500 million*, continuing Wizz Air's phenomenal growth story in the UK.

Over the past twelve months (to 31 October 2017) WIZZ has carried more than 5.5 million passengers on its Luton routes alone, an increase of 11% compared to 2016, making WIZZ the second largest carrier at Luton airport. Wizz Air is expanding its capacity at Luton by 15% year on year, and will offer in 2018 more than 6.9 million seats on its 46 routes to 20 countries.

As a result of this significant expansion, WIZZ is delighted to offer five new routes to UK travellers looking for their next adventure abroad. Daily flights will operate to the beautiful cities of Larnaca in Cyprus, and to Bratislava in Slovakia, whilst four flights per week will operate to Tallinn, in Estonia and three flights per week to Tirana in Albania and Lviv in Ukraine. Seats on the new routes are already on sale and can be booked from just GBP 26.99^** at wizzair.com.

The additional aircraft will also allow WIZZ to increase the frequency of flights on three of its most popular routes. Starting spring 2018 flights to Tel Aviv and Suceava become daily; and Prishtina flights will increase from two to three times per week, further demonstrating Wizz Air's commitment to its UK customers by creating even more exciting travel opportunities across Europe and beyond.

The arrival of the new aircraft and additional routes will create 150 new direct local jobs, increasing the number of WIZZ employees at Luton to 180, all trained to deliver the highest standards of customer service and aviation safety, ensuring an excellent passenger experience at every stage of the Wizz Air journey.

WIZZ AIR'S NEWEST ROUTES COMMENCING FROM LUTON

Destination	Days	Starts	Fares from*
Larnaca, Cyprus	daily	30 May 2018	GBP 26.99/ EUR 29.99
Tirana, Albania	Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday	31 May 2018	GBP 26.99/ EUR 29.99
Bratislava, Slovakia	Daily	20 June 2018	GBP 26.99/ EUR 29.99
Tallinn, Estonia	Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Sunday	17 September 2018	GBP 26.99/ EUR 29.99
Lviv, Ukraine	Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday	18 September 2018	GBP 26.99/ EUR 29.99

WIZZ AIR'S FREQUENCY INCREASES ON EXISTING LUTON ROUTES:

Destination	Weekly flights	From
Tel Aviv, Israel	daily from 4	25 March 2018
Suceava, Romania	daily from 5	20 May 2018
Prishtina, Kosovo	3 from 2	25 March 2018

Owain Jones, Chief Corporate Officer at Wizz Air said: "Today we once again bring more exciting news to the UK customers, again underlining Wizz Air's commitment to the country. We are thrilled that after only five months on from opening our base in Luton, we're announcing a massive expansion by allocating four additional aircraft Airbus A320 to our Luton fleet. Our investment brings benefits to the local community by creating 150 new direct jobs, as well as stimulating more jobs market in aviation and related industries. Wizz Air's network from Luton will expand with five new routes, to Larnaca in Cyprus, Tallinn in Estonia, Lviv in Ukraine, Bratislava in Slovakia and Tirana in Albania, creating more choice for our passengers and even more opportunities to discover Europe on WIZZ's low-fare routes. Our friendly and dedicated team looks forward to welcoming our passengers onboard to enjoy WIZZ's lowest fares and excellent onboard service".

Nick Barton, Chief Executive Officer at Luton Airport said: "The announcement that Wizz Air is expanding its operation at LLA is great news for passengers, the airport and the local economy. Our redevelopment is focused on creating an even better experience for more passengers and that includes increasing our choice of destinations. We look forward to building on our already strong relationship with Wizz, as we deliver a bigger, better LLA". 

About Wizz Air

Wizz Air is the largest low-cost airline in Central and Eastern Europe, operates a fleet of 87 Airbus A320 and Airbus A321 aircraft, and offers more than 550 routes from 28 bases, connecting 144 destinations across 43 countries. At Wizz Air, a team of approximately 3,300 aviation professionals delivers superior service and very low ticket prices making Wizz Air the preferred choice of 23.8 million passengers in the financial year ended 31 March 2017. Wizz Air is listed on the London Stock Exchange under the ticker WIZZ and is included in the FTSE 250 and FTSE All-Share Indices. Wizz Air is registered under the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Operational Safety Audit (IOSA), the global benchmark in airline safety recognition. The company was recently named 2016 Value Airline of the Year by the editors of Air Transport World, one of the leading airline trade magazines, as well as 2016 Low Cost Airline of the Year by the Center for Aviation (CAPA), a leading provider of independent aviation market intelligence.

For more information:

Sorina Ratz; Wizz Air Group; [e-mail]

Oliver Kay; FTI Consulting; [e-mail]; [phone]

^*http://www.airbus.com/newsroom/press-releases/en/2017/01/2017-price-adjustment-for-airbus-modern-fuel-efficient-aircraft.html

^** One way including all taxes and non-optional charges

^*** Airports Council International (ACI) suggests creation of 750 on-site jobs for every 1 million carried passengers per year 

Follow us on Twitter: @wizzair

Notes for Editors:

·      All flights operated on Airbus A320 aircraft, with 180 seats and A321 aircraft with 230 seats

·      New Airbus A321 deliveries started in November 2015

·      For free pictures of aircraft, crews and logo library please visit http://wizzair.com/en-GB/press

 

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