| Carrier: | Wizz Air
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| Headquarters: | Hungary
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| Founded: | 2002
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| Destinations: | 31
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| Bases: | Budapest, Gdansk (PL), Katowice (PL), London, Warsaw
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| Owners: | Indigo Partners, Private Investors
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| Listed: | Yes
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| Online Booking: | Yes
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| Website: | http://www.wizzair.com
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| Fleet | A320 9 + 24 on order
| Overview - Wizz Air Wizz Air Now entering its third year of operations Wizz Air was launched to coincide with the 2005 accession to the European Union of Hungary and Poland and other relatively developed economies of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). The carrier currently operates nine A320s, with 24 more on order.
After launching with a fleet of four A320s, connecting its bases at Budapest and Katowice, Poland with the main cities of Western Europe, the Wizz has expanded significantly. Under the guidance of chief executive, Jozsef Varadi, former CEO at Hungarian flag carrier, Malev, and with a USD25 million investment by US firm Indigo, Wizz now has scaled up operations to include non-stop services to Western Europe from Polish cities Gdansk, Poznan and Warsaw (the last launched after the demise of Air Polonia), as well as its original bases in Hungary and Katowice. In Jul-05, Wizz Air ordered 12 A320s (with options for a further 12) to be delivered from 2007-2010. This was followed by an order for a further 20 A320s in Jul-06, with deliveries scheduled to begin in 2009 and be completed by 2011.
The privately held carrier’s central role is still connecting CEE and its 70 million occupants with Western European cities, but it is growing to the east as well, with services launched to non-EU states Bulgaria and Romania. The carrier follows the LCC model of single aircraft type and secondary airports (e.g., London Luton, Paris Beauvais, Frankfurt Hahn), but prices itself at higher fares than some budget carriers, and offers a flexible fare class for business travellers, Wizz Bizz.
Outlook: Strong with good growth opportunities. Wizz is aiming at 20-30% annual traffic growth over the next five years, and a possible IPO within three. With its imminent fleet growth and the continued maturation of Hungarian and (especially) Polish consumers, the carrier’s outlook appears strong.
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