Wizz Air is looking to cut capacity by 10% across its network due to a global issue with Pratt & Whitney-manufactured engines. The budget carrier, which boasts bases in Belgrade and Skopje, and flies to a further ten cities in the former Yugoslavia, has said it is working on minimising the impact on its fleet but expects multiple planes to be grounded. Wizz Air is suspending a number of its routes over the coming winter season with Banja Luka, Podgorica, Pristina, Sarajevo, Niš and Ohrid all impacted. Currently, capacity levels for the upcoming winter are down in Banja Luka, Podgorica, Sarajevo and Tuzla when compared to the 2022/23 season. The carrier's fleet comprises of over 150 Airbus A320 family aircraft, including newer A320neo and A321neo jets, which are powered by Pratt & Whitney's engines. Aerospace supplier and parent company of Pratt & Whitney, RTX, said it would have to perform quality control on engines installed in hundreds of planes across the world. It added that between 600 and 700 Pratt & Whitney geared turbofan engines would need to be removed to be examined between 2023 and 2026.
In a statement, the low cost airline said, “Wizz Air is currently assessing the implications to understand the extent of the impact on its fleet, with initial estimates indicating a potential capacity reduction of 10% for the second half of the 2024 financial year”. It added, “Wizz Air was informed by RTX that its Pratt & Whitney GTF engines will be subject to inspection intervals, resulting in engines being removed for shop visits during the remainder of 2023 and into 2024 that will likely cause some aircraft being grounded in this period”. Wizz Air said it will seek compensation. "The company continues to take proactive action to mitigate any financial and operational impact and will be seeking financial compensation from Pratt & Whitney”, the budget carrier noted.
Other airlines in the region have also responded to recent engine issues plaguing the aviation industry. Croatia Airlines said that its CFM 56 engines have not been impacted by the global recall, however, the carrier did not comment on its recent agreement with Pratt & Whitney to supply GTF engines for its incoming fleet of Airbus A220 aircraft. On the other hand, Air Serbia said it would avoid ordering new-generation aircraft in the coming period due to frequent issues. “We decided not to order new generation aircraft. New technology aircraft are immature, many airlines are struggling with grounded planes for various reasons. I don't think Air Serbia is a carrier that should experiment with new types of aircraft. As the technology matures, then we will evaluate the available options”, the carrier’s CEO, Jiri Marek, said.
Small airports don't seem to be their focus anymore. So Belgrade will most likely get a new plane in 2024.
ReplyDeleteWizz Air screwed up in TZL and SJJ and moved on.
DeleteThat would be plane number 5 right?
DeleteYes.
DeleteTuzla makes sense since it is a small market with limited demand, that capacity can be better employed elsewhere. I am surprised they pulled out of SJJ. Market should be larger there.
DeleteBEG will definitely get another plane soon (number 5) as they will shift demand there from these smaller, regional airports.
There are rumors that they are interested in opening a base in INI but I'm not sure if it is true.
DeleteWith so many of their aircraft out of commission I don't think they will be opening a base in INI any time soon.
DeleteIf they are focusing away from small bases (up to three aircraft) INI is out of consideration for the foreseeable future.
They are not closing based with less than 3 aircraft, but the ones that have no potential to grow ower it. I don't know if INI has this potential, but that is what they said.
DeleteCould W6 base 4 or 5 planes at INI without the airport exceeding the 1 million pax a year limit placed by the Vinci contract for BEG?
DeleteThere is no such a clause, it's an urban myth perpetrated by a self-proclaimed expert. What the contract says is that INI can't grow at the expense of BEG. Given how good growth at BEG is I don't think there are any worries for INI.
DeleteYes, there is no evidence that this clause exists as the contract was never made public. The fact that they are building a new terminal budling with 1.5 million capacity annually indicates that they expect reaching over 1 million passengers.
DeleteIt's good that they are building a new terminal because charter traffic will keep on growing. INI facilities were a joke.
Delete4 or 5? LOL
DeleteWho said that small bases with 2 aircraft arent their focus anymore? They literally have a few of them in Romania, as well as VCE and CTA, while NAP has one aircraft based.
DeleteThey are focused on closing bases in the ExYu.
Delete10:18 That means nothing
Delete09:15 anon - TZL market is much larger than one in SJJ. Guys, self proclaimed aviation specialists - you don't know it all. Have a lovely day.
Deleteunless JU starts planning new routes from INI when can it be expected that the airport will reach 1 million let alone 1.5?
Deletewill it take 7 years maybe?
Gospodo, Tuzla je sa 2 aviona imala 600.000 putnika. To ne moze biti tako lose.
DeleteAnon 09:38, where did you see that Wizz might open a base at INI ? I'm curious, I hope they will do so and extend their network, there are lots of opportunities from Nis, mainly gusto routes I must admit, BER, BVA, LTN.. many more
Deletethey had one of them and it didnt work out
DeletePratt & Whitney engine problems seem to be causing headaches for many airlines
ReplyDeleteIn 2024 Lufthansa will have to ground around 40 A320.
Deletewow didn't know that. That could also impact their flights to the region.
DeleteWe'll see. They started loading their summer timetable and BEG is up to 6 daily (MUC and FRA). I guess they will have to lease some planes.
DeleteThere is going to be less pressure on them as wet leases won't be as needed by other airlines next year.
Way to early to draw conclusions for next summer. They have cut many flights each summer over the past few years even though they scheduled them. Of course hoping their plans materialize nonetheless.
DeleteI think they will respond to JU increasing FRA this winter. They were always the dominant player on the market. This winter JU will have a very competitive schedule and can give them a nice run for their money.
DeleteJU should seriously consider starting MUC.
DeleteAre the engine issues only on aircraft already delivered? Will this impact Croatia Airlines since their A220s have exactly these engines.
ReplyDeleteI think it depends on the engine production batch. Delta's A220s for example seem to be trouble free.
DeleteAir Baltic's on the other hand not so much.
air Baltic has almost half of its fleet grounded. It's crazy.
DeleteWhat we are losing are low cost flights. Also key destinations to Germany and Scandinavia. But Pegasus, Norwegian, Eurowings are here.
ReplyDeleteFlying from the western Balkan region to SAW in order to catch a connection to a European destination is very time consuming though.
DeleteFor me the most shocking part of this story is that Wizz Air is down to just two bases in the region: BEG and SKP.
ReplyDeleteGoes to show how purchasing power remains weak in the region.
+1
DeleteTheir prices from SKP seem very high to me for a LCC
DeleteAny specifics on the cuts?
ReplyDeleteThey still haven't decided.
DeleteRest assured that the Ex-Yu region will see massive cuts. They will cut 10% off their network on average, but the Balkans will see much more cut. Today for example they cancelled all flights from Tirana to Palermo, Malta and Chania.
DeleteThey would never start anyway
DeleteIsn't Abu Dhabi-Sarajevo suspended this winter because of engine issues? I think it turned out neo engines are having big issues in the dessert heat and dust
ReplyDeleteExactly!
DeleteThat's why they brought a few A321s to operate at AUH insted on the neos.
DeleteP&W is really racking up problems with their engines in recent years, how does a manufacturer in the business for almost a 100 years mess up so badly?
DeleteI see that W6 disproportionally cuts flights from airports in our region compared to the rest of Europe.
ReplyDeleteWell the majority of their network is in Eastern Europe...
DeleteYes but they don't seem to be cutting BUD, TIA, Poland, OTP as much.
Deleteyes they did in TIA even more so then in exYu for some reason
DeleteHere are some of the cuts:
DeleteBucharest – Eindhoven 29OCT23 – 04DEC23 Reduce from 7 to 6 weekly
Bucharest – London Gatwick 29OCT23 – 18DEC23 Reduce from 7 to 5 weekly
Bucharest – London Luton eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 28 to 24 weekly
Cluj – Barcelona eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 5 to 3 weekly
Cluj – Basel eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 4 to 2 weekly
Cluj – Berlin 29OCT23 – 22DEC23 Reduce from 4 to 3 weekly
Cluj – Eindhoven eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 4 to 3 weekly
Cluj – London Luton eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 17 to 14 weekly (Except 04DEC23 – 05JAN24)
Cluj – Lyon 29OCT23 – 19DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Cluj – Malmo eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 4 to 3 weekly
Cluj – Milan Bergamo eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 10 to 9 weekly
Cluj – Nuremberg 29OCT23 – 20DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Cluj – Paris Beauvais eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 10 to 9 weekly
Cluj – Vienna eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Craiova – London Luton eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 11 to 9 weekly (Except 05DEC23 – 09JAN24)
Debrecen – London Luton eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 6 to 4 weekly (Except 05DEC23 – 08JAN24)
Iasi – Billund 29OCT23 – 18DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Iasi – Istanbul 29OCT23 – 19DEC23 Reduce from 4 to 3 weekly
Katowice – Eindhoven eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 7 to 6 weekly (Except 08DEC23 – 11JAN24)
Katowice – Leeds/Bradford 29OCT23 – 19DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Katowice – London Luton eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 14 to 12 weekly
Larnaca – Athens eff 04DEC23 Reduce from 9 to 7 weekly
Larnaca – London Gatwick eff 14NOV23 Reduce from 7 to 5 weekly (3 from 02DEC23)
Larnaca – London Luton eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 7 to 6 weekly (5 from 13JAN24)
Larnaca – Prague eff 01DEC23 Reduce from 4 to 3 weekly
Larnaca – Thessaloniki eff 02DEC23 Reduce from 9 to 7 weekly
Rome Fiumicino – Dortmund eff 19DEC23 Reduce from 4 to 3 weekly
Rome Fiumicino – Eindhoven eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 5 to 4 weekly (Except 07DEC23 – 10JAN24)
Rome Fiumicino – Gothenburg eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Rome Fiumicino – London Gatwick eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 14 to 12 weekly (Except 19DEC23 – 06JAN24 and from 25MAR24)
Rome Fiumicino – Lyon 29OCT23 – 19DEC23 Reduce from 5 to 4 weekly
Rome Fiumicino – Malaga eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 5 to 4 weekly
Rome Fiumicino – Nice 29OCT23 – 18DEC23 Reduce from 5 to 4 weekly
Rome Fiumicino – Paris Orly eff 23JAN24 Reduce from 11 to 10 weekly
Rome Fiumicino – Prague eff 29OCT23 Increase from 10 to 11 weekly
Rome Fiumicino – Tenerife South eff 29OCT23 Increase from 2 to 3 weekly
Rome Fiumicino – Valencia eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 5 to 4 weekly
Skopje – Eindhoven eff 23JAN24 Reduce from 7 to 5 weekly
Sofia – Basel 29OCT23 – 20DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Sofia – Eindhoven eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 7 to 5 weekly (Except 05DEC23 – 08JAN24)
Sofia – Geneva 29OCT23 – 20DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Sofia – Hahn 29OCT23 – 19DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Sofia – Lisbon eff 29OCT23 Increase from 2 to 3 weekly
Sofia – London Luton eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 19 to 17 weekly (18 weekly 05DEC23 – 07JAN24)
Sofia – Nice 29OCT23 – 20DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Timisoara – Brussels South Charleroi 29OCT23 – 20DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Timisoara – London Luton eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 7 to 6 weekly (
DeleteTirana – Ancona eff 29OCT23 Increase from 4 to 5 weekly (Previous: eff 20DEC23)
Tirana – Athens eff 29OCT23 Increase from 5 to 7 weekly (Previous: eff 18DEC23)
Tirana – Bari eff 24DEC23 Reduce from 16 to 14 weekly (Planned increase removed)
Tirana – Bologna eff 21DEC23 Reduce from 21 to 19 weekly
Tirana – Brindisi eff 20DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Tirana – Brussels South Charleroi
29OCT23 – 17DEC23 Increase from 5 to 7 weekly
18DEC23 – 30MAR24 Reduce from 14 to 10 weekly
Tirana – Catania
29OCT23 – 17DEC23 Increase from 5 to 7 weekly
18DEC23 – 30MAR24 Reduce from 14 to 10 weekly
Tirana – Comiso eff 19DEC23 Increase from 3 to 5 weekly
Tirana – Eindhoven eff 29OCT23 Reduce from 7 to 5 weekly (Except 23DEC23 – 22JAN24)
Tirana – Hahn eff 19DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Tirana – Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden
29OCT23 – 20DEC23 Increase from 2 to 3 weekly
21DEC23 – 30MAR24 Reduce from 4 to 3 weekly (Planned increase removed)
Tirana – Memmingen eff 19DEC23 Reduce from 7 to 5 weekly
Tirana – Milan Malpensa eff 24DEC23 Increase from 18 to 19 weekly
Tirana – Mulhouse eff 21DEC23 Reduce from 5 to 4 weekly (Planned increase removed)
Tirana – Naples eff 18DEC23 Reduce from 4 to 3 weekly
Tirana – Nuremberg eff 19DEC23 Reduce from 3 to 2 weekly
Tirana – Pescara eff 20DEC23 Reduce from 5 to 4 weekly
Tirana – Pisa eff 18DEC23 Increase from 14 to 16 weekly (Previous: 21)
Tirana – Stockholm Skavsta eff 22DEC23 Reduce from 4 to 2 weekly (Planned increase removed)
Tirana – Turin eff 18DEC23 Reduce from 10 to 7 weekly (Planned increase removed)
Tirana – Venice Treviso
29OCT23 – 17DEC23 Increase from 11 to 14 weekly
18DEC23 – 30MAR24 Reduce from 21 to 14 weekly (Planned increase removed)
Tirana – Verona eff 18DEC23 Reduce from 9 to 7 weekly
Tirana – Warsaw
29OCT23 – 17DEC23 Planned service suspension removed. 3 weekly
eff 18DEC23 Reduce from 5 to 3 weekly
TIA-SOF/SKG are cancelled
Delete^^^
DeleteRyanair is chasing them away!
I think they are chasing themselves from these markets with bad business moves.
Deletelol the last two. did you forget about the topic of the article
DeleteNo but Wizz Air rushed to buy a whole bunch of new and untested aircraft. Now they are suffering from their greed. Should have been more careful. They gambled and lost.
DeleteTirana - Palermo cancelled
DeleteTirana - Chania cancelled
Tirana - Malta cancelled
Lol they never even started. All part of the ''response'' towards Ryanair new TIA flights announcement. They have neither enough crew or as it seems now even planes to operate those flights.
DeleteYour comment about rushing to buy an untested airplane due to greed is confusing...can elaborate on how they lost? Give details on contracts with airplane/engine supplier as well. Looking forward to your expertise on this 😀
DeleteIt's not like they purchased the Boeing max planes and had a crash & people died as a result of some negligence by the airplane manufacturer
@Anonymous 10:04 - SKP-EIN will continue being daily from April, they are reducing it to 5 weekly only for February and March
DeleteWizz just announced the close of another base - Sauceva, Romania.
ReplyDeleteEvery small base of theirs seems to be under threat of closure.
DeleteThat would have been a very good destination for Air Serbia.
DeleteI would much rather see JU increasing frequencies on existing destinations instead of launching Suceava, an airport that will be down to two flights a day soon.
DeleteThere is also Iasi and Cluj.
DeleteCluj is a 5 hours drive from Sauceva and Iasi is 2,5 hours drive and Iasi . BEG has a lot of destanations that aren't covered By Iasi so if I was JU I would defenitly consider a daily flight witn an ATR.
DeleteWizz seems to be having a lot of problems lately.
ReplyDeleteThis is the risk with the new tech. 787 had issues of its own.
ReplyDeleteI imagine P&W is 'on the hook' for airline losses.
"New technology aircraft are immature, many airlines are struggling with grounded planes for various reasons."
ReplyDeleteWell he said it right.
So Wizz will probably put one more plane in SKP next year
ReplyDeleteWell if they are going to launch Stuttgart and relaunch Salzburg then 7th plane is a must. Right now with their schedule for 6 planes, there isnt room for new routes as all 6 planes will be used three to four times a day.
DeleteWhat an absolute disaster Croatia Airlines is heading for. They should have leased 10-year old A320s and Embraers.
ReplyDeleteTrue expert
DeleteYou don't need to be expert to see they are leasing the most expensive aircraft which has engine issues, selling their own aircraft to lease them again, and all that to continue feeding LH in Minken and Vrankvurt, for peanuts. Disaster, absolute disaster, as a consequence of several corruptive deals. Now, if you disagree, please give your expertise to prove opposite
DeleteThe situation in the company is pretty bad, with these issues, company is also affected with brakes shortage (as are many airlines these months), it is worse than it is officially published, even to the crew. Wizz Air profit margins are so small, it makes good profit on volume when everything is ok, but losses are huge when issues like these happen. They are trying to patch things up by moving aicraft to "safer" bases, meaning more volume bases with good maintenance support, bases with minimal chances of diversions due weather etc.
DeleteReposting because I made the comment as a reply instead of its own:
ReplyDeleteThe situation in the company is pretty bad, with these issues, company is also affected with brakes shortage (as are many airlines these months), it is worse than it is officially published, even to the crew. Wizz Air profit margins are so small, it makes good profit on volume when everything is ok, but losses are huge when issues like these happen. They are trying to patch things up by moving aicraft to "safer" bases, meaning more volume bases with good maintenance support, bases with minimal chances of diversions due weather etc.
Is there a chance that Wizz will park a 7th plane in Skopje next summer, because if Salzburg and Stuttgart are launched soon, it will be hard to keep every route with 6 planes?
ReplyDelete