Low cost carrier Wizz Air will increase frequencies on a number of destinations across its Belgrade network during the 2023/24 winter season when compared to the ongoing summer. Even though the budget carrier usually increases operations on select routes for the holiday travel period, between mid-December and early-January, this time around it will boost its number of flights across the winter period, with frequencies exceeding those during the summer on some routes, while almost all are up on the 2022/23 winter. The airline will add extra flights when compared to this summer on nine routes, including Dortmund, Beauvais, Hamburg, Memmingen, Bergamo, Rome, Gothenburg, Malmo and Stockholm Skavsta.
From November 7, services between Belgrade and Memmingen will operate twice per day on Tuesdays and Saturdays for a total of nine weekly flights, up from daily this summer. Prior to that, from November 1, 2023 flights to Beauvais will be increased from five weekly to daily, while, from the same date, services to Rome Fiumicino will grow from three weekly to daily. Furthermore, an additional weekly rotation will be added on flights to Bergamo, Basel, Hamburg, Gothenburg, Malmo and Stockholm Skavsta. Out of the five new routes launched this summer (with Bergamo to be inaugurated next month), four will be maintained throughout the winter, with Zakynthos being the only seasonal summer service. As a result, flights to Bergamo, Berlin, Copenhagen and Lisbon will run throughout the winter.
Wizz Air based its fourth aircraft in Belgrade late last month. Its Chief Network Officer, Evelin Jeckel, told EX-YU Aviation News earlier this year, “We have a very good relationship with the airport [in Belgrade] now. With the charges scheme that they have now, they have created a level playing field as much as possible and we are very happy with their support and our relationship with them overall. I have no complaints at the moment”. Overall, Wizz Air’s capacity in Belgrade will increase 104% this winter when compared to last and will not be too far off its 2023 summer capacity levels.
Fiumicino goes to daily because during the summer Wizz is flying mixed operations, Ciampaiano and Fiumicino, but generally Rome stays daily. Anyway great news
ReplyDeleteBEG once again showing how it's done. Goes to show that Wizz is not giving up and that they are making Nikola Tesla their primary airport for the wider region.
ReplyDeleteWell, in the wider region there's Budapest and Bucharest, that are real Wizz-leaders.
DeleteAlso TIA, CLJ, SOF, IAS.
DeleteNone of those cities, starting with Budapest and Bucharest, has a strong legacy company.
DeleteWe speak for W6 bases not for flag carriers.
DeleteI am the original poster and I did not mean only W6 or LCC but overall. BEG is really showing them how it should be done. With these increases it is obvious that Wizz is planning a 5th plane next year. We still have to see what JU will do but it's obvious that BEG will be over 8 million next year.
DeleteFlag carriers heavily affect the size of LCC operations at the airport.
DeleteSeems like Wizz is trimming its network from Tirana. From what I can see Sofia, Malmo, Nice, Oslo and Dammam were terminated.
DeleteAnon 09:56; It's because they have no planes. This winter all they Neos have to go through engine check. I'll not be surprised if further adjustments to their bases in the region are made at short notice.
DeleteI think it also has to do with FR launching TIA and they are putting a lot of pressure on W6
Delete"Also TIA, CLJ, SOF, IAS" In SOF w6 is not the leader. Removed the new TIA flights. Soon more to cut
DeleteAnon 09:56 Only Oslo is terminated. Sofia will start next summer, Nice and Malmo are seasonal. Dammam never even started to begin with, flynas is operating it instead.
DeleteSofia was planned for April but flights are no longer in the system. They removed them while MMX and NCE are not in the system.
DeleteWhat system are you talking about? They all are bookable in April. Sofia was planned for December but it's moved to April.
DeleteExcept the routes to the UK, the rest of the new additions from TIA are not removed, but it's true that many which were meant to be launched this winter are now scheduled to start next spring. Time will tell how these will pan out.
DeleteAs I said earlier there is an engine issue (Pratt & Whitney) with all the NEOs; so all their NEO planes have to be checked this winter. Hence, we are seeing changes across their network. Their super ambitious plan to lunch 10 routes in TIA was just NOT sustainable because of lack of planes. Hence, there are focusing now in consolidate their existing routes. Similarly to what they are doing everywhere where they have a sizeable base.
DeleteThere are issues in the UK with Albanian migrants and the visas.
DeleteThere seems to be a crackdown and that will make travel to UK more difficult for Albanian passport holders.
They are just going to end Oslo from Tirana, as it is the only one with out scheduled flights as of April when compared to their other routes. I am confused a bit, is there enough gates at tia for all of the planes of wizz, albawings, air albania and other airlines that spend the night at the airport?
DeleteGates? I think you mean parking positions for aircraft. Yes there are enough, how do you think they operate there if there aren't?
Delete@13:01 for real? Yes i thought that they park the planes on the grass, thats why i asked.
DeleteOn some extremely busy summer nights they will park in taxiway at most.
DeleteTirana has 21 parking positions for aircrafts.
Delete2 more are being built already.
DeleteThanks, that's what i was asking for.
DeleteWell done Belgrade!
ReplyDeleteIt seems that great passenger's numbers will follow also during the winter.
Yes. Well done. It seems there is money to be made at BEG.
DeleteBelgrade will also attract some passengers from Tuzla.
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteActually, small correction. BEG-FMM is increased from 7 to 9 starting from November 7th!
ReplyDeleteOn Tuesdays and Saturdays there are two departures (06.55 and 10.40).
Starting from March 2024 the offer will be really good:
MUC 06.30 LH A320
FMM 06.55 W6 A321
FMM 10.40 W6 A321
MUC 13.05 LH A320
MUC 17.20 LH A319
Let's see what JU does in SZG and NUE.
JU missed the opportunity to launch MUC
DeleteMUC is the next. For Summer 2024.
DeleteDon't think so especially with NUE not being a strong performer. That route is almost exclusively operated by E90.
DeleteMUC is a big hole in JU's network.
DeleteI think they need to be a bit stronger before launching MUC. Lufthansa has loaded triple daily BEG from 31.03.
DeleteMaybe JU should try more with NUE and SZG but its Bosko doesn't know how to promote routes.
I would love to see MUC launched by JU.
Delete@Anon 10:43
DeleteLufthansa goes triple daily because MUC is their hub and they are feeding pax from BEG. JU would go against it with P2P passengers or those who transfer in BEG to MUC. With such high W6 ops, I think that MUC would be a waste of resources for JU
If you look at LH's schedule they are also really good for P2P.
DeleteNobody says that they are not, it's just that the purpose of their flights are MUC transfers.
DeleteI am sorry but even though there are a lot of transfers, Lufthansa sees a lot of locals flying on this route. There are thousands of Serbs living in Munich and not everyone wants to ride 120 km to FMM.
DeleteDo you have the numbers? Recently I flew the afternoon flight to MUC to transfer to TLS and the flight attendants announced 20+ connecting gates for the evening flights all over Europe from Vilnius to Bilbao. And the evening flights out of MUC are nearly all intra-European, the long haul flights have already departed by then.
DeleteI do not have the numbers but logic dictates that if there are tens of thousands of Serbs in an around MUC, many will chose LH to fly back home. It's not like everyone wants to drive all the way to FMM.
DeleteWhy not Tenerife?
ReplyDeleteOr Palanga.
DeleteJU will start this route IMO, this year will be good
DeletePalanga? For what?
DeletePalanga for fun
DeleteI don't think JU will have a major expansion next year. I think they will focus on consolidation and on making sure their operations don't fall apart like this year.
DeleteJU will be increasing frequencies next year.
DeleteI hope so. 🙏
DeleteWizz had a lot of delays and even cancellations at BEG this summer, especially in the afternoon wave. The flights were rescheduled to the next morning.
ReplyDeleteLet’s see if they manage to reduce delays, maybe it’s time to consider 5th aircraft.
Just like JU.
DeleteBoth airlines need more pilots and flight attendants.
DeleteJU also needs more aircraft and especially those that have new technology engines and burn less 80+ dollars a barrel fuel.
Just my2cents
Well Wizz was cutting unprofitable routes left and right so they have some spare pilots and crew. Bosnian staff will most definitely move to BEG.
DeleteW6 is greatly understaffed all across Europe.
DeleteHopefully the return to profitability that they are experiencing will make them hire more AND keep the ones they already have.
Its possible to see 5th aircraft in 2024.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely not.
DeleteWhy? Most of routes now are upgraded? TZL also loses full base?
DeleteWith these winter increases they will have to cut LCA from 5 to 2 weekly and terminate HER and Zakynthos. I don't see them doing that so they will have to find capacity elsewhere to bring back summer frequencies from this summer.
DeleteZakynthos and Heraklion are seasonal routes. Zakynthos was never planned to operate in winter and Heraklion never has. Stop spreading misinformation
Delete^ it's called cluthching at straws and attempting to find anything negative.
DeleteThey will most definitely need to base a 5th aircraft for next summer!
DeleteI wrote that with these increases they don't have room to operate those three routes like they did in summer 2023. In order to operate them which they will they will have to bring a new plane to BEG or operate them from another base.
DeleteI didn't say those routes will be cut. Jesus. You really need to take a chill pill.
Anonymous 09:44
Delete+1
Wizz Air now focuses on their largest markets, Belgrade is one of them. BTW soon we'll get bew routes for Summer 2024, but why not and for W23/24.
ReplyDeleteAny info on which new routes W6 will launch for summer season '24?
Delete@09:24 Belgrade is one of their largest markets? Bucharest, Budapest, Cluj Napoca, Gdansk, Warsaw, Luton, Rome, Milan, Sofia, Skopje, and then its Belgrade.
DeleteTirana is larger than half of them
Delete@13:14 yes i forgot to mention it.
DeleteHaving 4 A321s in Belgrade (plus Luton and Abu Dhabi which are operated by non-BEG aircraft) next to JU which has 30+ planes only goes to show how big BEG's potential is.
DeleteWizz Air is fully aware of this which is why they have not cut almost anything despite decimating their network all accross Europe.
TZL don't like this 😕
ReplyDeleteWell done W6 and BEG.
ReplyDeleteNot good news for JU.
JU have big network with 30 planes and daily frequencies to the largest cities in Europe.
DeleteBy now it's obvious that both can coexist especially since they are together killing other airports in the region.
DeleteA lot more competition for JU for flight to Germany, Italy, Scandinavia, Portugal will be great for consumers.
DeleteIt will help keep ticket prices in check, they are too expensive right now.
Wizz is not cheap which shows taht they are full. That's why many routes are increased in November (slowest month of the year).
DeleteLIS prices with Wizz are CRAZY.
There’s enough room for growth for both W6 and JU
DeleteIt's more than obvious that W6 doesn't plan on expanding in Bosnia or continental Croatia. They will serve this market through BEG. Now we have to see how this growth will impact their operations in TSR
ReplyDeleteThey have two aircraft in Timisoara and generally the airport isnt doing much it wasnt doing/serving even 10years ago
DeleteThey cut Venice from TSR so they don't seem to be doing too well from there.
DeleteBecause of this cut?
DeleteBecause of the cut and because they reduced several destinations this winter. They were stagnating for a long time in TSR
DeleteThey also removed half of their routes from Varna during winter, also one plane will based instead of two A320s.
DeleteDo you know what is being cut in Varna this winter?
DeleteWith this and JU's expansion.
ReplyDeleteMaybe someone familiar with the numbers can share their expectations. How many passengers will BEG serve in 2023 and 2024?
If W6 brings a 5th plane then BEG can come really close to 8.5 million next year. All depends what JU does.
Delete2024 BEG gonna hit 8.5m fo sures. 👍
DeleteBergamo?
ReplyDeleteFive years they are talking about Milan, and still they sre not in sight, LOL.
Belgrade Vienna with Wizz would be always super full, can it happen?
ReplyDeleteI think they will have to look at that route but they should not launch it with less than 4 weekly flights.
DeleteThis route is too short for A321 as they do not have enought time to sell their products.
DeleteYeah, that's definitely not why.
DeleteBEG-VIE would be slightly sorter than their flight to Rome so I don't see an issue with it. Main problem is that JU and OS have up to 6 daily on some days.
Delete@10:49 their shortest route is from Tirana to Brindisi with flight time of 25 minutes. What products are you talking about??
DeleteOr Tirana-Bari.
DeleteOvde jedino Anon 12:13 razmislja normalno.
DeleteIn regards of Lisbon, I think that companies ( YU and W6) should consider changing departure dates and think a bit more about their clients and not just mutual competition...We should all agree that we have 4 flights weekly from BEG to LIS leaving on only 2 days- Saturday and Tuesday...More variety in days could be beneficial for companies as well
ReplyDeleteLisbon is a very crowded airport and I don't think it's about mutual competition betwixt JU and W6 but the fact that LIS is slot restricted and airlines fight for slots so they just take the available ones remaining, but you're right, it would be better if there was more variety in days.
DeleteIt is like this so that they can directly compete and it is fer, but from a customers point of view, its really fucked up.
DeleteDoes this mean Wizz is cutting routes and frequencies all over the region to increase pressure on Air Serbia in Belgrade?
ReplyDeleteNo. It means other markets and underperforming.
DeleteSo Wizz is cuttting lines at other, cheaper airports where there is no route competition but adding them in Belgrade where there is almost competition for all airports (or nearby ones)? That makes no sense.
DeleteProfit goals might be secondary for Wizz in Belgrade. Making life harder for Air Serbia seems much more strategically important goal for Wizz.
Yoh have no clue yet you have created a conspiricy and are presenting it as fact. There is a reason the Serbian market is one of the fastest growing in Europe and it comes down to demand. There is also a reason why almost every single airline serving BEG has increase their flights and why several new airlines have launched flights. I guess they fly enpty and loose money. Hope you feel better.
DeleteThere is a reason why BEG doesn't have to be cheap like TSR, OSI, or TZL or to hand out massive discounts like ZAG, SOF or TIA: market is big enough and yields are good.
DeleteThese airports have to be flexible otherwise they might not get the flights. BEG like BUD or OTP have strong local demand and people can afford to pay more to fly. All airlines and especially Wizz love this because it means their yields are good. That is why they are fighting for these markets, it's worth it.
Both Wizz Air and Ryanair have left Tuzla. Is there anyone else out there that is interested in launching flights? No.
easyJet suspended Berlin so JU boosted flights even more and Wizz Air launched their own.
See what I am talking about my good old friend?
JU and W6 compete on some of the new routes. We have to agree to disagree on the question: is that competition based on increased demand only or is there more to it?
DeleteWizz doesn't have good finances and they are retreating from much larger markets than BEG. If they were not making money in Belgrade they wouldn't be pushing for growth.
Delete@ 18.34 conspiracy theorists. Belittling others to make up for the failure of his home market.
DeleteНе, нисам Пургер. Слажем се да он ради тачно то из друге реченице.
DeleteYeah
ReplyDeleteThey should to start with Africa, Dakar Senegal, Algier, Capo Verde...
ReplyDelete