Low-cost carrier halves growth plan for UK
Budget airline Wizz Air said today it will shift additional capacity intended for the UK in the second half of this year to other countries.
The Budapest-based airline, which added 29 new routes in the first quarter of this year, said its plans to halve its UK growth were a direct result of the vote to leave the EU and the fall in the value of sterling.
"The UK’s decision to leave the European Union has led to a notable weakness in fares (in euro terms) on routes to/from the UK mainly due to the much weaker British pound which is currently 19 per cent lower than the same period last year versus the euro," said the company in an interim management statement.
"Wizz Air has already started re-adjusting its network due to this weakness and halving its intended second half growth to the UK and re-deploying this capacity to other non-UK routes."
The carrier saw an 18% year-on-year growth in passenger numbers to 5.8 million in its first quarter to the end of June.
Revenue was up 10% to €364.9 million and net profit was up 54% to €50.7 million.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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