Tens of thousands of Wizz Air passengers were affected in the summer by the problems faced by the company, of whom 20% were from Romania, József Váradi, CEO of the airline, told a press conference in Bucharest, on Tuesday.
“We are talking about several tens of thousands of passengers affected in the summer. I am talking at the total level, in the total network. Romania probably represents about 20% of this figure. In the summer, the compensations were close to 100 million euros. So we compensate accordingly. You don’t have to worry about it. Of course we don’t want to cancel, that’s why we are concerned about making the flights. But if we still have to cancel for one reason or another, we comply with European regulations and pay passengers whatever rights they have. We appreciate and respect their rights. At the moment we have about 70% of the claims for compensation automatically. So even customers can get their refund. They press a button and receive the money without any intervention from the company. And practically we make a lot of efforts so that this process is as automated as possible. Of course, there are always more complicated claims that require more processing time. But to alleviate all these problems, we try not to cancel and carry out the flights. That’s what we’re focusing on, and have you seen the investments we’ve made? Last month we did not have any canceled flights in Romania”, said József Váradi.
Wizz Air CEO mentioned that there were problems in Romania in June and July and showed that the air operator adopted a series of decisions to avoid such situations. “We have made a series of difficult decisions because it costs us money. We invest in spare aircraft. A spare aircraft costs 100 million euros. We used to have five spare aircraft in the system. At the beginning of the summer, we reached eight aircraft, so for the entire Wizz network, for the entire Wizz system. So from five to eight. We have invested 300 million euros for this. We have created several stand-by crews and pilots so that if we need to bring in a new aircraft to recover operations, we also have crews available for those spare aircraft. And this is a significant investment. We also invested a lot in logistics. We were distributing spare parts for technical recovery from a number of points and expanded the number of points. For example, we have a logistics base in Bucharest, so that we are as close as possible to the problem. If there is a problem in Romania, let’s not bring the parts from Poland, because we have a big base in Poland, but we also have parts here in Bucharest. We are talking about warehouses, hangars, spare parts. So it is an investment. And then we also looked at the flight schedule. We have assessed the risk of personnel going off schedule or the risk of flight cancellation. So we optimized from this point of view. And we invested a lot in the call center as well. Before we had three, now we have five call center units, so more capacity, more infrastructure so that we can meet people’s requirements. And we also invest in the resources on the ground, in the airports. If there is a problem, people should have someone to turn to, not to feel threatened”, said József Váradi.
He stated that the problems have not completely disappeared, but that currently the company is no longer facing the situation of June and July.
Wizz Air makes Bucharest its largest base, announces expansion
At the same time, Wizz Air has today announced further significant expansion in Bucharest. In June 2024 Wizz Air will base two additional new state-of-the-art Airbus A321neo aircraft, launch a new route to Leipzig, Germany and increase frequencies on 21 of its existing routes in Bucharest. With this investment, the airline will have 19 aircraft stationed, and 800 people working at its Bucharest base, making it the single largest Wizz Air base, as well as further reinforcing its position as the market leader in the country with a 57% market share.
Today’s announcement means that in 2024 Wizz Air will have 36 aircraft based in Romania at its 6 bases in Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Craiova, Iasi, Sibiu, and Timisoara, and a network comprising of 171 routes to 79 destinations in 24 countries. Over the past 17 years, the airline’s presence has contributed to the creation of 1,600 jobs with Wizz Air in Romania and a further over 60,000 jobs in hospitality and associated industries.
“Today Wizz Air is further strengthening its position of Romania’s leading airline. This investment in our Romanian operation will turn Bucharest into the single largest operational base of Wizz Air, underlining our dedication to the country by creating new jobs with the company and the sector, stimulating economy, and providing affordable travel choices to evermore passengers. Today, we already have over 54% of the market growing to 57% next year, meaning that every second person traveling by air is choosing to fly with Wizz Air. This is an honour and a recognition but also a responsibility that we have as an airline to continue providing seamless passenger experience throughout all stages of the journey, we have significantly improved our operations with a 99.3% completion in Romania this summer and we stay committed to further improve this figure,” József Váradi, Wizz Air’s Group CEO, commented.
As Wizz Air also announced it is recruiting more flight attendants. People interested in the job can apply to become a member of the airline’s successful team under this link.
The airline is also actively hiring both type rated and non-type rated captains and experienced first officers via the airline’s Pilot Recruitment website.
No. Misleading from the real issue. Measures taken by this super profitable company are not accepted by me as a passenger. I want Pilots operating my flight that get a decent salary. I do not care if the Aircraft is new or shiny or eco friendly. I car only about my safety.