An airline that bills itself as Europe’s greenest ultra-low-cost airline launched an all-you-can-fly subscription service last month. Wizz Air’s latest promotion invited travellers to pay €500 ($552) for 12 months of “unlimited flights to any destination on its network”.
According to the airline, all 10,000 passes sold out within 24 hours. “We have been overwhelmed by the extremely positive response for our new ‘All You Can Fly’ membership and are excited to start flying our new members,” a representative from Wizz Air Abu Dhabi, the company's Middle East subsidiary, told The National. “The membership allows frequent flyers to save money, visit friends and family more regularly and spontaneously visit off-the-beaten-track destinations.”
Travellers who purchased passes can now fly to destinations such as Maldives, Iceland and Italy, with no routes excluded from the membership. The airline has not said if it will sell more subscriptions in the future.
“The subscription is perfect for frequent, spontaneous flyers seeking deals, with any optional extras or add-ons available at the regular price,” the representative said. “As our network continues expanding, we expect greater interest in our unique and exciting products."
Travellers in the UAE can still purchase Wizz Air’s MultiPass, a 12-month subscription plan that allows subscribers to travel each month on eligible Wizz Air flights by paying a monthly fixed fee.
A golden ticket to unlimited flights
Wizz Air's all-you-can-fly passes sold out in less than a day, but is the membership a golden ticket to unlimited, year-round flights? While no specific destinations are excluded from the promotion, the airline doesn’t guarantee seats on any of its routes. “There is no specific percentage of seats reserved for non-subscribers/subscribers, this is a subject of availability,” the representative explains.
On every flight, the airline will determine if enough seats are available for All You Can Fly members. This could mean that during peak times such as public holidays, summer and Christmas, travellers who have paid for an annual subscription may need to spend more to guarantee a seat.
Under the membership, flights can only be booked three days before travel – so it’s not ideal for travellers who want to plan. “Wizz Air will determine ahead of the 72-hour period if enough seats are available to be booked via All You Can Fly memberships,” said the representative.
The membership claims to “offer unlimited ticket purchases”, which does ring true. However, travellers should not expect a free ride. Every flight comes with a flat booking fee of €9.99. And since return flights are only bookable if flights are within 72 hours of the initial booking date, most reservations are set to come with two booking fees as trips longer than three days will need to be reserved via two one-way flights. However, this doesn't apply to the first booking under the membership, which is complimentary.
These niggles are minor and unlikely to impact frequent flyers and those who are flexible about where they travel. However, the promotion has not landed well with environmental groups.
"Frequent flyer programmes are fuelling aviation’s unsustainable growth, giving some flyers a false sense of reality that we don’t live in a climate crisis. Unlike what some may think, flying is not an all-you-can-eat buffet," says Jo Dardenne, aviation director at Transport & Environment, Europe’s leading advocates for clean transport and energy.
Binge-flying or bargain airfares?
And while Wizz Air isn't the first airline to introduce a flight subscription service – US budget airline Frontier has a similar model – given that we’re in the midst of a climate emergency and that aviation is already struggling to meet its sustainability targets, the airline's campaign could be perceived as irresponsible. But that’s not so, says Wizz.
“The new product not only helps travellers discover Wizz Air’s extensive network but, in fact, contributes to maximising the load factor during the last 72 hours before the flight," the representative said. "High load factor is a crucial efficiency driver and leads to a reduction in emission intensity."
The airline, which operates one of the youngest fleets in the industry, is keen to highlight its efforts towards more sustainable flights. “Wizz Air is proud to have the lowest carbon emissions intensity among our airline competitors, making it the most sustainable flying option,” says the representative, highlighting Wizz Air's target of reducing CO2 emissions per passenger/km by 25 per cent by 2030 as well as the company's continuing investments in sustainable aircraft.
Safety 'top priority' for rival hyperloop company
The chief operating officer of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, Andres de Leon, said his company's hyperloop technology is “ready” and safe.
He said the company prioritised safety throughout its development and, last year, Munich Re, one of the world's largest reinsurance companies, announced it was ready to insure their technology.
“Our levitation, propulsion, and vacuum technology have all been developed [...] over several decades and have been deployed and tested at full scale,” he said in a statement to The National.
“Only once the system has been certified and approved will it move people,” he said.
HyperloopTT has begun designing and engineering processes for its Abu Dhabi projects and hopes to break ground soon.
With no delivery date yet announced, Mr de Leon said timelines had to be considered carefully, as government approval, permits, and regulations could create necessary delays.
Business Insights
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The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The Bio
Hometown: Bogota, Colombia
Favourite place to relax in UAE: the desert around Al Mleiha in Sharjah or the eastern mangroves in Abu Dhabi
The one book everyone should read: 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It will make your mind fly
Favourite documentary: Chasing Coral by Jeff Orlowski. It's a good reality check about one of the most valued ecosystems for humanity
RESULTS
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Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
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WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
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What is safeguarding?
“Safeguarding, not just in sport, but in all walks of life, is making sure that policies are put in place that make sure your child is safe; when they attend a football club, a tennis club, that there are welfare officers at clubs who are qualified to a standard to make sure your child is safe in that environment,” Derek Bell explains.
'The Batman'
Stars:Robert Pattinson
Director:Matt Reeves
Rating: 5/5
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BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
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2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
