Wizz Air has replaced its 239-seat Airbus A321neo aircraft stationed at its Tuzla base with 180-seat Airbus A320neo aircraft, reducing capacity by around 22% compared to its initial plan. The low cost carrier, which reopened its Tuzla base in December last year with a single A321neo, had planned to station a second aircraft of the same type in June. However, it opted for the smaller A320neo instead and, at the start of July, also replaced the original A321neo with the smaller variant. As a result, the airline will offer almost sixty fewer seats per rotation on average. In July alone, this equates to 11.024 fewer seats.
The Minister of Trade, Tourism and Transport of the Tuzla Canton, Almir Žilić, recently said he expects the low cost airline to base its third aircraft in Tuzla by the end of the year, noting that discussions are already underway. The Tuzla Canton government allocated approximately 615.000 euros to Wizz Air in 2025 for the launch of new routes. This year, the funding will be increased to 1.1 million euros to support existing services and the introduction of new ones. Wizz Air now generates the bulk of Tuzla’s traffic, accounting for around 95% of all passengers. The airport handled 225.411 passengers during the January - May period, representing a year-on-year increase of 114.7%, or an additional 120.410 travellers.
Speaking to EX-YU Aviation News recently about its operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Wizz Air said, "Our focus remains on Tuzla. We serve Tuzla, Sarajevo and Banja Luka in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and we remain committed to the market. We enjoy a strong partnership with Tuzla Airport, which we greatly value. Wizz Air is an important and reliable partner for both the region and Bosnia and Herzegovina, helping to enhance connectivity and create opportunities for economic growth. At the same time, we must remain mindful of overall capacity and ensure our network in the country is designed as efficiently as possible".
As long as its the capacity and not the frequency being cut
ReplyDeletethis is clearly a more cautious approach than originally planned. Better to have two A320neos operating reliably than promise more capacity they can't fill.
DeleteI wonder if the airport infrastructure or operational limitations influenced the decision, or if this is purely a fleet planning issue.
DeleteIt is purely a demand issue
DeleteMakes sense. Wasn't their load factor in the high 60% the first few months of ops?
ReplyDeleteThat was there reported load factor in the first month of base operations and that is December.
Delete*their
DeleteAnon 9:02 to je bio faktor opterecenja dolaznih putnika u decembru,wizz za dolazne putnike dobija subvencije.
Delete239 seater is way too big for Tuzla
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteBut people in these comments keep trying to convince us that a third jet is coming.
ReplyDeleteWhen I wrote that even 2 aircraft is too much because they are underutilised, I got attacked in the comments.
From the text
Delete"The Minister of Trade, Tourism and Transport of the Tuzla Canton, Almir Žilić, recently said he expects the low cost airline to base its third aircraft in Tuzla by the end of the year, noting that discussions are already underway. "
I don't trust a thing these politicians say. Remember when Mostar Airport management claimed they signed an agreement for a Wizz Air base there and posted a photo from a hallway at Wizz HQ?
DeleteThe minister is talking about a third aircraft, yet Wizz has just downsized both based aircraft. Those two messages don't really align.
Delete@Anon09:03 To je raspored Wizza,oni su tako zaposlili ta 2 aviona koja nisu iskorištena do maksimjma.Za to se ne pita aerodrom.
DeleteAnd why do you think the schedule is the way it is? You think they are purposefully skipping profitable routes?
DeleteDefinitely there will be no 3th aircraft, as obviously they cannot fill up 2 smaller not even 3th,the demand is not enough for 3th one. Even 1 320 will be completely enough for Tuzla size market
DeleteAnonimous 19:11 sad stvarno pricate gluposti
DeleteVidim da je dosta citatelja ovdje koji nemaju pojma o Tuzli a i mrze Tuzlu.
Nobody hates Tuzla. Get a grip
DeleteWizz has played it so brilliantly in Tuzla. First they close the base and bring the airport to its knees and then it returns less than 2 years later with a fully subsidized base with the upper hand of authorities being scared that they could close it again at any minute.
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteThose hypocrites will never fail ripping off governments and municipalities. They call themselves “Reliable” partner, but they packed their stuff in one afternoon. Would love JU to open TZL route just to shake them
DeleteJU to TZL? on a Cessna maybe. A JU coach service stopping at Ugljevik and Bijeljina would work more than a flight that short.
DeleteIs Wizz replacing all its A320s with A321s or they will have A320s in the future?
ReplyDeleteYes. Its long term strategy is to become an almost exclusively A321neo operator.
DeleteThey will only have 6 A320neo, but in the end they may retire them as well.
DeleteReally odd decision for an LCC.
DeleteNot at all. Having a single fleet is what made FR the king of the sky
DeleteIt's not an issue to have a single fleet (even through Ryanair does not as it has A320s too) but to choose a 240 seat aircraft for the single fleet.
DeleteRyanair has a single fleet type. Lauda is operated seperately and is a tiny amount of its operation.
DeleteFr have 3 types of B373
DeleteThe benefits of single type fleet get lower and lower with each unit. Economies of scale benefits go flat after a certain number of units. I see it wrong to go for A321 only. Not all routes can support those.
DeleteWell if that's the case eventually Wizzair will leave Tuzla and another airline will give it a shot. That is the nature of the beast.
DeleteWhich one? Lumiwings? TZL is dead without Wizz.
DeleteWizz Air only has 6 A320neo. They made mistake opting only for A321neo. That aircraft is way too big for some markets.
ReplyDeleteAgree. I'm really surprised they made such a decision. Tuzla is a perfect example of where these aircraft are too big. I would guess simmilar cities like Ohrid, Nis and Banja Luka are in the same boat.
DeleteThe a321 is very cost efficient per seat. However places like Tuzla are never going to be sufficently profitable without financial support from the state.
DeleteI cannot remember the source but I recall wizz saying that they find the difference in the operating costs between a231 and a320 to be surprisingly small so it seems they have done the maths
DeletePretty much same what OU did with opting all fleet A220 , for some market size of aircraft simlly dont fit the demands. I think in future if they dont decide to leave Tuzla again they will operate only one aicraft
DeleteWell only sort of. The A321 is perfect for where the big money is at - places like Luton or Budapest etc. But you are right that for the Tuzla market its only a matter of time till they 'streamline operations' e.g. cut it back to the bare bones.
DeleteWizz being Wizz.
ReplyDeleteThe demand is not what they expected. 2 A321 for the size of Tuzla airport is too much and too big planes. They will probably keep only one plane in future
DeleteThey also promised Vienna flights from Tuzla, They even won the tender for it and then discontinued it a month later.
ReplyDeleteDidn't they replace it with Bratislava?
DeleteYes they did
DeleteThey also suspended Larnaca after 2 or 3 flights
DeleteThose are coming back at the end of September.
Delete^ hopefully
DeleteSubsidies should come with clear performance targets. If public money is increasing, the public should know what is expected in return.
Delete^ agreed
Delete@09:21 clarity is not what the region specialisies in
DeleteInteresting that the canton is increasing subsidies while Wizz is reducing capacity. Hopefully the additional funding translates into more routes rather than simply supporting existing operations.
ReplyDeleteWith Wizz accounting for 95% of passengers, Tuzla really needs to diversify. Depending almost entirely on one airline is very risky, which you would think the airport has learned by now.
ReplyDeleteThey didn't bring Ryanair a few years ago but it didn't work out due to taxes.
Delete@09:21 there arent many airlines who would give the airport the time of day.
DeleteAt least three weekly Austrian flights to Vienna is exactly what TZL needs. TZL has lost flights to Vienna, and Austrian can provide an excellent network out of Vienna.
DeleteKako vidim ni Austrian ni Tuzla nisu zainteresovani.
Delete@20:29 but they can equally use an aircraft to ferry Viennese holidaymakers to Spain and make far more money. Just because airlines can, doesn't mean they will.
DeleteThis feels like a temporary adjustment rather than bad news. Wizz has invested heavily in Tuzla again, and I don't think they would have reopened the base if they weren't committed to it.
ReplyDeleteAn A320 with higher load factors can be more profitable than an A321 with too many empty seats. Airlines look at yields, not just passenger numbers.
DeleteWell obviously
DeleteThe important thing is that Wizz is still expanding in Tuzla. Two based aircraft is already a huge improvement compared to where the airport was last year.
ReplyDeleteSince they have just 6 A320neos, where are most of them based, anyone know?
ReplyDeleteAll over the place but it seems one is based in Milan and another in Bucharest OTP and another in Bucharest Baneasa.
DeleteAs i understand Wizzair a320 ops looks like this at present:
DeleteCLJ -x3
WAN
WAU
WBP
IAJ x4
LYS
WZR
LWN
WBY
TSR x 2
LWU
LYK
@09:40 i don't think any A320s are based in Milan with regularity.
DeleteThanks for the info! Wonder from where they took the 2 A320s to base in Tuzla
Delete@09:40 nor at BBU
Delete@09:55 they cut a third aircraft at Timisoara this spring
DeleteMaybe this shows that some of the new routes are taking longer to mature than expected.
ReplyDeleteSo prices will now go up
ReplyDeleteYes it's good business decision
DeleteNot good for pax though
DeleteI doubt prices will go up because flights are half empty anyways
DeleteIf i was the Bosnian tax payer i might wish more money was spent on improving road acess around the country than paying wizzair to fly to Tuzla. In a more functional political landscape the country would have a more joined up transport policy. We only have to see the continued talk of airports in every which corner of the country to see how deeply disjointed things are.
ReplyDeleteWhat about rail? As a complete outsider what is the status of railways in Bosnia and Herzegovina?
Deleteone of the weakest passenger rail networks in Europe
Delete@09:55 Welcome! Rail transport is horrid and neglected. Interestingly the Tuzla region has some of the best (former) rail infrastructure and a long and wonderful history of railways (google Brcko - Banovici railway for a good read). There was a very long-standing project to better link the region with Serbia before the collapse of Yugoslavia and if there was the money and the will (and there is neither) and rail link between Tuzla - Bijeljina - Sremska Mitrovica and Belgrade would be a natural transport corridor. Another possible (and probably cheaper) link would be Tuzla - Karakaj - Loznia - Sabac and Belgrade as the infrastructure is already there but needs complete modernisation which is beyond the financial capabilities of BiH at present.
DeleteHistorically BiH had some wonderful railways. If you are new to the region i suggest you look a the cycling routes that have been made from from old narrow-gauge lines in Hercegovina - its really magical if one likes that kind of thing.
Makes complete sense in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone know what their loads are?
ReplyDeleteMay loads hovered at around 78.8%.
DeleteJa mislim da Wizz ovih dana ima jako slabu popunjenost,ne samo iz Tuzle,primjecujem da i u BNX nije bas bajno ni kod Ryanaira ni u BNX ni u SJJ,vjerovatno cijela ova globalna kriza ima uticaja.Što se tice Wizza u Tuzli,ovih dana je jako losa popunjenost ja mislim.Ali i neka je kad forsiraju destinacije koje nemaju uspjeha u Tuzli,dovoljno je reci da Bratislava ide 4pw,nema smisla...
DeleteTwo weeks ago I was flying several times with A321 form Tuzla to Memmingen and from Tuzla to Basel; I could only see a couple of empty seats.
ReplyDeleteYes but yield was probably trash
DeleteAlso they're probably the busiest routes out of TZL.
DeleteDemand is not as strong, EU economy is struggling
ReplyDeleteCompared to the wonderful economy in BiH? give us a rest mate
DeleteHey mate how about you give us a break? Most passengers are not people from Bosna but rather gastos from the West who are not doing very well financially right now.
DeleteWho flies to Tuzla? And I don’t mean this in any derogatory sense I’m genuinely asking. Tuzla isn’t that big of a city and I assume does not pull that many tourists. So is it being used by people going to Sarajevo? Diaspora from nearby areas?
ReplyDeleteMostly diaspora and tourists from Tuzla region. There is very limited inbound tourism.
DeleteThanks. Is it worth a visit? The city I mean
Delete@10:45 i once flew Tuzla - Stockholm - London on two separate flights because it was extremely cheap to do so. Ryanair/SAS. I remember in Stockholm airport they had immigration officers of Ex-descent and they were grilling passengers as to their reasons for visiting. When i exited Sweden for the second flight the passport officer was surprised I'd been in the country for 1hour 30 minutes.
Delete@11:05 Yes. Tuzla is a very pleasant city and nice introduction to Bosnia. If you've never been to the country you can fly in there, travel down to Sarajevo to continue a visit and maybe loop down to Mostar, then up towards Banja Luka and leave from there. With a rent a car this is a great loop and highly recommended in a country that has tons of dramatic landscapes and even some of the smaller towns are quite fun to stop off and have a coffee and watch the the world go by.
Delete@exyuaviation,da li je samo ministarstvo reklo da ce 3 bazni biti do kraja godine ili tu opciju i Wizz ne iskljucuje?
ReplyDeleteWhy would Wizz ever exclude that possibility? Everything is possible. It won't happen, but that does not make it "impossible"
DeleteDoes anyone have load data for TZL–ZRH?
ReplyDeleteTa linija jos nije pocela,u četvrtak sada je prvi let.
Delete