Hungarian planes stuck in Ukraine warzone until 2029?

It is not clear when civil aviation over Ukrainian airspace will be restored, regardless of the date of the end of the war with Russia. Meanwhile, three planes of Hungarian low-budget airline Wizz Air are stuck in Ukraine.

Three planes of Hungarian low-cost airline Wizz Air are still stuck in Ukraine, Világgazdaság reports. It is unclear, when or how could they leave Kyiv. It is possible, that they will be stranded in Ukraine even after the end of the war.

The problem of closed Ukrainian airspace

The European Aviation Safety Agency has forecast that the current restrictions on Ukrainian, Russian, Belarusian and Moldovan airspace are unlikely to be lifted in the period under review. With the long periodicity of reviews, it could mean that the Ukrainian airspace will be closed until 2029.

Even if the war ends in the coming months/years, Eurocontrol is calculating that the airspace over Ukraine closed on 24 February last year would not be immediately free, as it would probably take a long time to restore the infrastructure that had been destroyed or damaged. It is also uncertain for how long the bans will remain in place for political reasons, for example, the expulsion of Russian aircraft from the European Union.

The Ukrainian State Aviation Administration denied Eurocontrol’s assertions to Euractiv. They claimed that the organisation does not issue or use military forecasts. The assertions for the years 2023-2029, according to the Ukrainians, are based on estimates that do not take into consideration how long geopolitical tensions may remain and what other economic developments may occur that could either progress or hamper the recovery of air transport.

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Wizz Air flights and planes affected by the war

When contacted by Világgazdaság, Wizz Air said it had been forced to cancel 140 flights a week to and from Ukraine due to the war.

“Wizz Air is continuously monitoring the events and remains committed to Ukrainian passengers, so as soon as the airspace is safe again, the airline is ready to return to the country,” a spokesperson told vg.hu.

But until then, Wizz Air faces another challenge. Three of the airline’s planes are actually stuck in Kyiv. Wizz Air must accept that it is up to the course of the conflict and the Ukrainian authorities to decide when they can be flown to Hungary. The Airbus A320s are reportedly intact but would obviously need a thorough overhaul and maintenance before they could be transferred.

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