Wizz Air backs cheap seats over comfort for new long-haul Middle East flights

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Wizz Air plans to base some of its new Airbus extra long-range narrowbody jets in Abu Dhabi, helping to unlock new markets within an eight-hour flight from the UAE capital, including cities in western Europe.

Unlike the full-service airlines that offer perks for long-haul flying such as premium cabins and in-flight entertainment, Wizz Air's flights will be all economy-class seats and without frills. The airline's chief executive Jozsef Varadi told The National that he believes passengers are willing to sacrifice comfort for lower prices on long-haul flights.

“Today we fly up to six hours and people pay for that,” he said. “So clearly this concern around comfort got overtaken by the economic rationale on the consumer side, and the XLR creates the opportunity to add another two hours of range … and what this achieves is that we are able to connect the east side of our network in Abu Dhabi with the west side of our network which is western Europe."

Mr Varadi said passengers are voting with their wallets. “It is the pricing. When we pushed the button on the reservation system for London to Jeddah, the system exploded. We registered over-demand for the flight, it was a lot better than what we expected,” he added.

“People are rational. Comfort is traded against economic considerations and so long as there is the right pricing point, people will trade down or now they can fly three or four times a year.”

By 2026, some of the A321 XLR models will be based with Wizz Air Abu Dhabi, a joint venture between Hungary's Wizz Air Holding and Abu Dhabi state holding company ADQ, Mr Varadi said during a visit to the emirate. These jets will be powered by a new version of Pratt & Whitney's geared turbofan engine, the GTF Advantage, which will be better suited to the hot climate of the UAE.

“We need to see the new engine coming out, this is expected by the end of 2025, so we want to wait for that because Abu Dhabi is a hot and harsh environment which exposes the engine a lot more than a benign European operation,” said Mr Varadi. “We want to make sure that we have a resilient engine for operating the aircraft here in Abu Dhabi. Reasonably, I think as of 2026 you should be expecting the [A321] XLRs to be coming to Abu Dhabi too.”

Wizz Air Abu Dhabi started operations from the UAE capital on January 15 and currently operates a fleet of 12 Airbus narrowbodies. Hungary-based Wizz Air, which carried a record 62 million passengers during the financial year that ended in March, last week said it will launch routes between Europe and the Middle East in 2025 using the Airbus A321 XLRs.

The London-listed carrier will start a new route between London Gatwick and Jeddah from March that will cost £134.99 ($177) one way, and introduce flights from Milan Malpensa airport to Abu Dhabi starting at €100 ($110) one way in June, using Airbus’s latest single-aisle variant.

The airline, which operates an all Airbus fleet, expects to take delivery of eight A321 XLRs in 2025, from a total of 47 on order. The new extra long-range jets will allow the airline to operate flights of up to eight hours, compared with the current maximum of six on its Airbus A321neos. Both aircraft seat 239 people.

The A321 XLR's range and fuel efficiency will help low-cost carriers tap into markets further afield that are traditionally served by large and less fuel-efficient wide-body aircraft.

Airbus A321 XLR fleet strategy

Wizz Air's A321 XLR strategy focuses on reaching markets that were previously out of range, allowing it to connect the east side of its network in Abu Dhabi with the west side in Europe.

It will focus on “three strategic dimensions” of the route network – basing these jets in Abu Dhabi for flights to western Europe, basing the aircraft in London for routes to the Gulf and placing them in Central Europe to connect travellers to India, Mr Varadi said. These plans depend on securing regulatory approvals.

“We are excited with regards to India, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and the broader Gulf region, but we have to keep in mind that this region is subject to bilateral designations so it's not just sheer commercial decision-making, we have to get permits to operate routes into India and that is taking time to sort it out,” he explained. The airline is “making progress” to secure permits for the Indian market, with updates likely within the next six to 12 months, he added.

Elsewhere, the airline is exploring a “long list” of routes for its A321 XLR jets. “From a London perspective we are looking at 15 different routes, and if you look at it from an Abu Dhabi perspective we're probably looking at the same number of opportunities at the moment.

“It doesn't mean that we're going to be doing all of them, but there's a significant pool of opportunities,” he said, noting that the choices depend on market demand, financial performance and market access.

Mr Varadi said Wizz Air has dropped plans to set up a local airline in Saudi Arabia after bidding for the licence several times. But the airline is interested in continuing to develop the Saudi market for inbound travel.

There are no plans for transatlantic flights using the XLR model, however, according to the chief executive. “The strategy for the XLR is to stay within our footprint but join more dots and maximise the network opportunities for the consumer. The XLR makes a lot of sense. It can embark on underserved markets where there is unsatisfied consumer demand,” he said.

It offers low-cost flights, giving more options for passengers such as migrant workers in western Europe to fly home more often to see their families, he said. Lower fares will also attract first-time flyers, he added.

“We're going to be converting people from high-cost to low-cost flying and you're going to see a lot more people flying six to eight hours because that segment is becoming increasingly commoditised, so actually people can afford it,” he said.

Mr Varadi said delivery of the XLR jets by Airbus in the first quarter of 2025 is “fairly confirmative”. Airlines are struggling with delays from plane manufacturers Boeing and its European rival Airbus.

Challenging operating environment

Asked if Wizz Air might issue a profit warning later in its financial year, given pressures from geopolitical tensions and problems with Pratt & Whitney's engines that grounded some of its jets, Mr Varadi said: “We can't talk about financial performance but we are holding the lines and we think the current guidance to the market is appropriate and reflective of the performance of the business.”

Wizz Air is not currently pursuing any merger and acquisition deals amid the wave of consolidation among European airlines. Mr Varadi said: “Intellectually we are interested in seeing what is happening but practically we are uninterested in doing anything ourselves because it is counterintuitive to our [business] model.”

Merger and acquisition would introduce a “huge source of complexities” into the system, while the airline's model is to deliver the lowest possible cost, he said.