Wizz Air removes six Sarajevo routes over winter

Low cost carrier Wizz Air is believed to be suspending six routes out of its Sarajevo base over the coming months. The airline discontinued ticket sales for flights from Bosnia and Herzegovina’s capital to Malmo, Gothenburg, Charleroi, Sandefjord, Treviso and Beauvais over two weeks ago for the winter. The last service from Sarajevo to Malmo is scheduled for October 7, to Gothenburg, Charleroi and Sandefjord on October 9, while Treviso and Beauvais will be operated for the last time on October 27 and October 28 respectively. Although passengers might be led to believe that the airline is still selling tickets from Sarajevo to Malmo and Gothenburg past early October, as the option is available on Wizz Air’s website, these are in fact for flights out of Tuzla.

Wizz Air has not directly responded to EX-YU Aviation News’ inquiry whether the six destinations are being terminated or temporarily suspended, noting instead that it constantly monitors its network and adjusts schedules based on demand and other market conditions. For its part, Sarajevo Airport has said it cannot comment on the business decisions made by carriers but added it was aware of the possibility that some routes may be cancelled as the aviation sector is going through challenging times. Sarajevo Airport has updated its 2022 summer season timetable to reflect the cancellation of flights to Malmo, Gothenburg, Charleroi and Sandefjord from early October. Further changes remain possible, although the flights are likely to be restored next summer. 

Wizz Air opened its base in Sarajevo in May of last year and has quickly grown its network out of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s capital, fuelling its strong passenger growth. It stationed a second aircraft in the city last December. However, the cancellation of six routes, the majority of which are scheduled to end at the start of October, could indicate the airline will remove one of its two jets stationed in Sarajevo. Wizz Air launched operations to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s capital after winning a tender organised by Sarajevo Airport which was seeking a low cost carrier to base two aircraft in the city, in return for a number of incentives. Based on the tender conditions, Wizz is eligible for additional discounts if it increases operations throughout 2022 and 2023.