air

Ryanair CEO: Hungarian ministers are like Dumb and Dumber

Dumb and Dumber Ryanair CEO

In early June, the Hungarian government announced that it would impose an excess profit tax on some sectors of the economy, including airlines. In response, the Irish Ryanair CEO, Michael O’Leary, has repeatedly said that ‘Economic Minister Márton Nagy is an idiot’ for wanting to tax something that does not exist. Read below for more.

Ryanair CEO insults Hungarian ministers again

According to O’Leary, they have no extra profit, and not much profit either. On the contrary, Ryanair has made a loss of 1,500,000,000 EUR over the last two years due to closures. The Ryanair chief has now given an interview to Euronews. In it, he also suggests that Gergely Gulyás, PM’s chief of staff, might be trying to favour Wizz Air by urging people to choose the Hungarian airline rather than the Irish one. O’Leary says that Wizz Air is more expensive than Ryanair, which is why they are the most popular airline in Hungary.

“These two Hungarian ministers are like Dumb and Dumber in that Jim Carrey film, if they think people will happily pay the extra tax and choose a more expensive airline overnight,”

says O’Leary.

Euronews also asked him why he was so vocal about the tax. He said that “this is the only way to talk to stupid politicians who want to tax their citizens senselessly. We will always expose and embarrass these politicians as they pass stupid laws and lie to the people that they shouldn’t have to pay the extra taxes. Only when Márton Nagy repeals his idiotic tax will I keep quiet.”

Ryanair urges passengers to make complaints

Ryanair passengers have received a letter from the airline, encouraging them to write a protest letter to Minister Márton Nagy, RTL.hu reports. In a message, Ryanair explains the reasons for this unusual action. The airline says they need the passengers’ help to abolish “this idiotic and unfair tax.” At the end, a template message can be generated and sent to ko**********@mk.hu, the address of the Prime Minister’s Office.

The pre-written message, addressed personally to Márton Nagy, in English, will include, among other things:

  • “We Hungarian people and our families will now be forced to pay this unjustified tax because of your greed and stupidity.”
  • “I protest against the new “excess profit tax” on loss-making passenger airlines flying from Hungary. No such tax is justified when Ryanair and Wizz Air are reporting record losses.”
  • “All you are doing is increasing the cost of air travel for Hungarian passengers, their families and visitors to the country.

Brussels Airlines cancels flights to and from Budapest

Brussels Airlines

The Belgian national airline, Brussels Airlines will start a three-day strike on Thursday, 23 June, which affects flights to and from Budapest. 

Brussels Airlines informs all passengers in their report that flights will be cancelled on 23rd, 24th and 25th of June. ​”We sincerely regret the impact of these social actions on our customers, at the start of the summer holidays. On these three days, 533 flights (charters included) were originally scheduled for almost 70,000 passengers,” writes brusselsairlines.com.

40,000 passengers are affected

Maaike Andries, Spokesperson for Brussels Airlines says they plan to keep around 40% of the original flight programme. The cancellations represent around 315 flights, 38 of which are long-hauls, and impact almost 40,000 passengers. According to 24.hu, the airline is working to get passengers on flights to and from their destination. For example, the airline might rebook them on other flights, within Lufthansa Group and outside. In addition, those who end up not wanting to travel will be offered a refund of the ticket price.

Runway Wizz Air
Read alsoChaos: Wizz Air’s Budapest flight cancelled, hundreds stuck in London

Reasons for the strike

Heavy workloads and worsening work conditions led to the three-day strike, reports brusselstimes.com. Pilots, flight attendants and groundhandling hostesses are not only protesting against staff shortages. They also have to deal with a higher number of passengers during holiday season and the lifting of pandemic restrictions. With the strike, workers want to achieve lower work pressure.

First priority are passengers

“Our first priority right now is our passengers. We sincerely regret the impact these actions have on our customers,” the airline said just after workers announced the strike. In their report, they also asked passengers for their patience. However, as the airline had to face serious challenges over the past years, it might not be easy to get back on track. Firstly, tavelling was nearly impossible because of the pandemic. Although now the situation is better, there have been significant losses. Secondly, the airline is battling increased costs, mainly but not only due to the fuel price. A three-day strike will have a very large impact on the company’s bottom line.

Brusselsairlines.com will keep its readers and the passengers informed, make sure to return to their website for further information.

budapest airport ferihegy
Read alsoBudapest among the top 100 airports in the world

Ryanair-Hungarian government war over departure tax getting serious!

Hungary Ryanair Airline Tax

Hungary continues its financial stabilisation as the war between Ukraine and Russia continues. Though the country is currently expecting stable growth in the coming years, some forms of taxation will likely remain. Furthermore, extra taxes on the air travel sector have given way to new conflicts.

Radical statement by Magyar Nemzet

This week, an article by Magyar Nemzet stated that 60 percent of Ryanair passengers are cancelling their July tickets. They firmly state that the majority of travellers reject the idea that airlines should pass on the tax on their excess profits to their customers in the ticket prices.

“Ticket buyers condemn the arrogant action of the Irish multinational on the extra tax. This tax by the government is being introduced in several sectors to balance the effects of the war on families to replenish defence funds,” – states Magyar Nemzet

They add – “The attitude of market-dominant traders, who pay similar taxes in many European countries, is not unique. Their practices are questionable not only in terms of pricing but also concerning their ground handling partners.”

Response from RyanAir

In response to the statements above, the press department of Ryanair said the following to 24.hu.

“The claims made by Magyar Nemzet are false and fictitious,” – says the airline.

In their reply to the above source, Ryanair said that less than 3% of passengers travelling after 1 July had taken the opportunity to cancel their tickets with a refund of the original price. They also added that any seats which were cancelled will be available for Hungarians to buy.

“97 percent have decided to pay Márton Nagy’s idiotic excess profit tax on loss-making airlines,” – the company continues. “Minister Nagy must now apologise to Hungarian families who have to pay higher fares because of the idiotic extra tax.”

Such language towards Márton Nagy is nothing new from Ryanair. On several occasions, they have called the Hungarian economist defamatory names.

Hungarian taxes that remain

On the subject of taxation, let us now look at which sectors will face extra taxes in the future. Portfolio wrote an all-encompassing article based on the Hungarian Government’s recent financial statement.

Three increased special taxes could therefore remain after 2023: the airline tax, the increase in the financial transaction tax and the advertising tax.

Will Ryanair reduce Budapest flights due to the departure tax?!

Ryanair, Budapest, airport, Hungary

The director of Europe’s largest low-cost airline says the Hungarian government’s argument that the departure tax of the loss-making aviation industry actually aims to protect Hungarian families is outrageous.

In its official statement, Ryanair said that the new tax is not a departure tax, but a highway robbery by a government that is completely out of touch with reality – reported by Szeretlek Magyarország.

Last year, Ryanair reported a loss of €355 million. Meanwhile, Wizz Air, the second-largest airline in Hungary after Ryanair, reported a loss of almost €650 million.

With a combined loss of €1 billion for the two airlines, Ryanair’s CEO Michael O’Leary does not feel that the imposed departure tax is justified.

The head of the Irish low-cost airline did not hide his opinion in his statement. As he said, Márton Nagy’s argument about the departure tax was complete idiocy. As he understands the Minister is proposing a tax of €10 per flight when airlines are making record losses. According to the CEO, despite his economics degree, the Minister should be sent back to school.

The CEO revealed that Hungary is the only country to impose a departure tax on airlines despite record losses. In contrast, other governments are able to find sectors where windfall profits are now being made – for example, the British government has imposed taxes on oil and gas companies, Shell and BP – „how anyone can think of finding those profits here” – commented the CEO to the Hungarian news portal hvg. He cannot think of a reason that would justify the government’s decision. According to Michael O’Leary, the newly introduced measure cannot be about “protecting Hungarian families”, since many Hungarian families have relatives living abroad. Thus, visiting them becomes even more financially burdensome.

According to the CEO, the Irish low-cost airline is considering reducing the number of its Budapest flights. Michael O’Leary said „Ryanair is present in 26 EU countries where it had not occurred to the governments to impose a departure tax on air passengers. People can travel elsewhere instead of Hungary – that’s why I think this tax will be detrimental not only to air travel but also to tourism and employment.”

While the choice of destinations is not expected to change, the frequency of flights is likely to do so.

Some will see a reduction in weekly frequencies, others in the number of daily flights. For those who bought tickets for July or later, Ryanair has already sent a letter saying that if they were to travel, they would have to pay the €10, as the airline has no extra profit to pay. From July this amount will be included in the fares. The Hungarian government has launched a consumer protection investigation into the matter, which is still under review. According to the CEO, Hungary is a member of the European Union and airlines in the European Union have the right to set their own pricing policies. European governments have no say in what prices are set. The only people who can complain about this are Ryanair’s passengers.

The airline’s chairman expects pre-pandemic, or beyond, traffic for the next financial year. Numerically, passenger numbers could rise to 150 million in the next financial year. But profit is not expected because of the sharp rise in oil prices due to the war: from $60 a barrel to $120 a barrel.

The period ahead shows a lot of uncertainty for several reasons. If the war was to cross the border of Ukraine, it would obviously lead to a collapse in air traffic, and if the Ukrainians can beat back the Russian invasion, it could lead to a further decrease in traffic. In addition, it is questionable how the coronavirus situation will develop, and whether new variants are expected in the autumn-winter period.

Read alsoMinister: Ryanair’s remarks on Hungarian windfall taxes unacceptable

Ryanair CEO: the Hungarian departure tax is stupid and a robbery

ryanair ceo Michael O’Leary

The CEO of Irish airline Ryanair strongly condemns the departure tax imposed by the Hungarian government on airlines.

Ryanair has condemned the Hungarian departure tax on airlines. In a recent, strongly-worded statement, they called on Minister of Economic Development Márton Nagy to explain why airlines that are losing money due to the Coronavirus and Ukraine should be hit with an excess profit tax.

The questions

As we can read in the article of Portfolio, according to the statement, the low-cost airline is seeking answers to the following questions from Márton Nagy:

The airlines are being burdened with the new tax to protect Hungarian families, while the sector is suffering record losses due to the Coronavirus pandemic and the Russian-Ukrainian war.

  • Why should Hungarian families and travellers have to pay higher ticket prices when the Hungarian airline industry has been suffering for two years because of Covid and the war in Ukraine?
  • How does the tax on airlines help Hungarian families?

The strong-worded statement

According to the Ryanair statement,

“this special tax is not a departure tax, but a highway robbery by a government that is completely out of touch with reality.

While European governments are cutting taxes on aviation to help traffic recovery, tourism and the job market after the pandemic, Hungary is imposing taxes on loss-making airlines such as Wizz Air and Ryanair, further undermining the competitiveness of Hungarian aviation and tourism, according to Portfolio.

Consumer protection investigation

As hvg.hu writes, Ryanair also mentions the consumer protection investigation that was ordered by the Hungarian government after it was discovered that the aviation company was passing on the extra charge imposed on passengers travelling from Budapest (HUF 3,900 [EUR 9.79] for European routes operated by Ryanair) to those who bought tickets before the tax was announced.

They write they “welcome the consumer protection investigation and call on the Budapest Government Office to extend its investigation to how the Hungarian government can impose a departure tax on a loss-making industry”.

“Perhaps Minister Nagy can explain why this idiotic tax is being imposed on the loss-making airline industry,”

the statement says.

The Ryanair CEO, Michael O’Leary, even offered to send Martin Nagy a book titled “Economics for Beginners” (referring to a series of books).

ryanair ceo Michael O’Leary
Read alsoRyanair CEO: the Hungarian departure tax is stupid and a robbery

Investigation launched against Wizz Air because of fatigued pilots

wizz air pilots

Airline regulators have launched an investigation due to comments made by Wizz Air CEO József Váradi.

Controversial comments were leaked

The CEO of Hungarian low-cost airline Wizz Air has made some controversial comments a few days ago: he called on staff to work despite their fatigue, after trying to take time off earlier.

According to Index, unions have expressed outrage after József Váradi, CEO of Wizz Air, told workers that too many were taking time off for fatigue and that “sometimes it is necessary to go the extra mile”.

“The extra mile”

A security expert has warned that the current chaos, airport queues after the Coronavirus and last-minute cancellations are contributing to the exhaustion. József Váradi said the following in an in-company video message:

“We cannot run this business if every fifth person of a base reports sickness because the person is fatigued. We are all fatigued, but sometimes it is required to take the extra mile.”

EASA and investigation

As we can read in Forbes’ article, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) said on Friday that it was investigating Váradi’s comments, which were revealed in a leaked video, following concerns from pilots’ unions.

Wizz Air is under EASA’s continuous oversight, strictly complying with applicable legal requirements. EASA will now investigate the allegations and decide whether further supervisory action is necessary in the case.

Serious safety risk

“EASA recognises that fatigue can be a serious safety risk that needs to be recognised and properly mitigated. We are currently investigating the allegations to determine if and what further ad hoc surveillance measures are required.”

Wizz Air is one of the airlines that have been forced to cancel flights amid an industry-wide recruitment crisis, exacerbated by airport queues that have increased delays and disruption.

A safety expert said that currently, the problem for all operational staff in aviation is that while working and rest time is measured in hours, the actual level of fatigue depends on the type of work. The stress and uncertainty caused by the current chaos is helping to make staff tired sooner. Therein lies the challenge, according to the expert.

ryanair plane
Read alsoHungarian consumer protection launches investigation against Ryanair!

Unidentified plane from Hungary intercepted in Romania by the USA

Hungarian Defence Forces Fighter Jet Military Aircraft Gripen

An unidentified small plane from Hungary passed over the western part of Romania’s airspace on Wednesday evening, and two US Air Force fighter jets were alerted to intercept it.

Aircraft without permission

The low-flying, Beechcraft twin-engine aircraft took off without permission in the Debrecen area at 5.30 PM Eastern European time. Eight minutes later, it was intercepted by Hungarian Gripen aircrafts, but the small aircraft did not respond to radio calls or visual signals, according to 24.hu.

The unidentified aircraft, flying with its transponder switched off, entered Romanian airspace at 5.49 PM in the Nagyvárad (Oradea) region. At 5.58 PM, it was followed by two F-16 fighters of the US Air Force on patrol in the Romanian airspace.

No hostile behaviour

According to the Romanian Ministry of Defence (MAPN), the small aircraft did not display any dangerous or hostile behaviour, but continued to fail to respond to the internationally used radio and visual signals of the fighter aircraft sent to intercept it, as 24.hu writes.

The plane continued its flight to Karánsebes-Szörényvár, crossed Serbian airspace for two minutes at around 7:00 PM, and then flew over to Bulgaria. In the meantime, the two American fighters returned to the Fetești airbase, while two Bulgarian F-16s took over the pursuit of the target.

Investigation

According to MAPN, Bulgarian authorities began a ground investigation on Wednesday evening in the area where the unidentified aircraft was last detected by radar.

The Romanian Ministry of Defence has no precise information on what happened to the small plane after it entered Bulgarian airspace, as it disappeared from military radar screens (which could indicate that it either landed or crashed in Bulgaria). Bulgarian authorities are currently investigating the area around the last known position of the target to identify the aircraft and establish the details, as Telex.hu reported.

What does interception mean?

Senior pilot Csaba Ugrik earlier spoke to Index about what the term interception means in this context:

“The idea is to approach with safety in mind, keeping your distance and signalling to the intercepted aircraft that you have ‘got them’. Then visual identification is done, reading the number on the vertical control plane, determining the colour, identifying the aircraft type, and we also try to take photos of the intercepted aircraft. When we are done with the VID, the collected data is passed on to the headquarters, where we get a response telling us whether to follow the aircraft or everything is OK, their flight is safe, we can return home.”

Read alsoHungarian elected President of the UN General Assembly

Hungarian consumer protection launches investigation against Ryanair!

ryanair plane

Ryanair has informed its passengers that it will retroactively charge them almost HUF 4000 each due to the excess profit tax imposed by the Hungarian government. However, the government thinks this is unacceptable and will proceed to launch an investigation on the matter.

Extra charges

According to 444.hu, on Thursday, Ryanair passengers who had booked a ticket from Budapest for July or later received a letter. It shows that the airline will retroactively charge everyone an extra HUF 3900 (EUR 10) because that is the amount of the excess profit tax introduced by the government per passenger. For destinations outside Europe, it is even more, HUF 9750 (EUR 25).

If this is not acceptable, you have until 16 June to cancel your booking, otherwise the amount will be automatically deducted from your bank account. After cancellation, the full amount previously paid will be refunded.

Unacceptable pricing practices

On Friday, Economic Development Minister Márton Nagy said in a statement that the government finds Ryanair’s unfair ticketing practices unacceptable.

“The government has decided to impose excess profit taxes on airlines, among other sectors, to protect Hungarian families. The government has made it clear to all concerned that it will keep a close eye on market developments and will do its utmost to prevent the excess taxes from being passed on to the public. The Government has indicated in advance that it will carry out a thorough investigation into each such case and will take strong action against harmful practices,” 444.hu quoted the Minister writing.

Investigation

The government considers it unacceptable that Ryanair is passing on to travellers the excess profit tax levied on airlines. They find it particularly objectionable that Ryanair has already started this practice for previously sold tickets.

As Portfolio.hu writes, the Minister for Economic Development, Márton Nagy, has therefore called for a consumer protection investigation to ensure that the competent bodies of the Government Office, using their consumer protection powers, thoroughly investigate and, if possible, prevent the airline’s unfair practices.

Read alsoHungarian elected President of the UN General Assembly

New flight between Budapest and Istanbul – first plane landed, PHOTOS

anadolujet turkish airlines flight budapest istanbul

AnadoluJet, the low-cost subsidiary of Turkish Airlines, will start operating three flights a week from Istanbul to Budapest starting from 2 June. The first flight arrived at Budapest Airport on Thursday.

AnadoluJet welcomed to Budapest

A new airline, AnadoluJet was welcomed at Budapest Airport, which arrived Thursday morning from Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen International Airport. The airline’s Boeing 737-800 aircraft will fly to Budapest three times a week, Travelo reported earlier. The AnadoluJet aircraft have 189 seats.

The flights will operate on Thursdays and Fridays in the morning and on Sundays in the afternoon.

anadolujet turkish airlines flight budapest istanbul
Photo: FB/Budapest Airport

Three flights per week with the low-cost airline

As airportal.hu reports, Turkish Airlines operates three flights per day from Istanbul’s main airport to Budapest, which reaches the pre-pandemic capacity. Now,

AnadoluJet will add three flights per week, so the seat capacity will be 7% higher than in 2019,

said Balázs Bogáts, Head of Flight Development at Budapest Airport, in his speech at the official greeting event of the new airline on Thursday.

anadolujet turkish airlines flight budapest istanbul
Photo: FB/Budapest Airport

Timetables

There are 42 flights a week between Budapest and Turkey this summer peak season – July -, offering more than 7,400 seats one way. In addition to Istanbul’s two airports, Izmir and Antalya can also be reached directly from Ferihegy.

According to airportal.hu, the route was only available until the end of the summer timetable when it was announced at the beginning of April, but is now also included in the winter timetable with three flights a week.

Destinations

According to the information available, the airline will cover the two-hour journey with a 189-seat Boeing 737-800 aircraft. The announcement also points out that AnadoluJet’s flights offer connections via Istanbul to Ankara, Antalya, Dalaman, Bodrum and Izmir within Turkey, and to international destinations such as Dubai, Tel Aviv, Tbilisi, Tehran and Baku.

Balázs Bogáts added that destinations in Turkey have always been part of the Budapest schedule, as tens of thousands of Hungarians have been travelling to Istanbul and other coastal destinations for years.

As trt.net.tr reports, Şamil Karakaş, First Vice President of AnadoluJet, said in a statement that the airline will also contribute to the development of tourism between Turkey and Hungary, and the new route will allow more people from Turkey to visit Budapest.

Keleti railway station Budapest train MÁV
Read alsoTrain or plane? Travel from Budapest to London!

Train or plane? Travel from Budapest to London!

Keleti railway station Budapest train MÁV

In the age of air travel, we might forget just how harmful planes are to the environment. Trains, on the other hand, can spare our planet from climate chaos. Let’s say you want to travel to London from Budapest by railway: would that be feasible? Our article below will reveal the truths behind this railway adventure.

An article by CNA Luxury shed light on the possibility of train travel between the cities of London and Budapest. In the article Henry Mance, the writer details his experiences travelling by train between the two cities. With some personal reflections and a couple of scenic stops along the way, Mance arrives at his conclusion. He states that, although his trip by train was much more enjoyable, it was not worth the time or money.

However, while air travel is a cheaper option, the harmful gas emissions of such means of transportation can not go overlooked. Let us examine the topic further. 

Pros and cons of both forms of travel

Train travel has some endearing facets to it. In spite of the long twenty-hour duration, there are some considerable upsides as well. The journey itself can become a part of your next vacation. Marvelling at the trans-European landscape, we can get a stronger sense of unity between the lands. All the stress of air travel is gone. Say goodbye to worrying about making it to your terminal on time, long security checks, and crowded planes.

Although these all sound like fine tradeoffs, train passengers pay the price. Your journey from Budapest to London could cost over EUR 587 (HUF 233,000F).

In the case of air transportation, the negatives might outweigh the positives. As mentioned above, security checks and boarding stress are just the first of many cons. Cramped economy flights, poor quality meals, and delays in departure and arrival are a few more. The list goes on: luggage collection, passports, and the travel time to and from airports. These are all reasons not to hop on a plane. On the other hand, there are some big advantages: timeliness and price. If you fly by Ryanair, you would have to pay around EUR 40 (HUF 16,000Ft) for a ticket. You will make it to London in under three hours as well.

But is it worth the 243 kilos of carbon dioxide released into the air?

Plan your trip

Let us now plan our train trip from the city of Budapest to London. Mark Smith’s website will be of great help in planning our voyage.

  • Setting off towards Vienna from Keleti pályaudvar by railjet, we board our train on Tuesday, at 3:40 pm.
  • From Vienna, we must make the lengthy transfer to Brussels. Nightjet sleeper trains leave from Vienna Hbf at 8:13 pm and arrive in Brussels at 9:52 am the next day.
  • To arrive at London St Pancras, we board the Eurostar leaving at 12:56 pm. By 1:57 pm we arrive in the UK.

Takeaways

In conclusion, the choice of travelling by either train or plane is a personal one. Nothing beats the adventure (even if it takes about a day) of a transcontinental journey, which is also easy on the environment. If you must make it to London in a hurry, you are better off booking a flight. While the irreversible damage to our planet is a major downside, you will surely make it to your destination on time.

Hungarian Government is making Wizz Air pay extra taxes!

Wizz Air plane

On 26 May 2022, the Hungarian government published important information on taxation. Airlines that have not been paying extra in the past are now on the government’s list of extra levies. This is a surprise as the sector is only just beginning to recover from the shock of the coronavirus outbreak. Read below for more details.

Economist Márton Nagy detailed his thoughts at the government briefing: “All airlines operating in Hungary will now have to pay surtax, with a €10 fee per passenger.”

Portfólió reports that Márton Nagy justified the airline tax by saying that passenger traffic at Budapest airport is increasing fast. The summer travel season will likely be strong, as people want to go abroad after two years of restrictions.

The losses of Wizz Air

Wizz Air is the largest of the Hungarian airlines in terms of market share, so the special tax announced today, meaning a total of 30 billion forints per year, is likely to hit the company founded by József Váradi the hardest. In the most recent financial year, Wizz Air had a 31.5 per cent share of the Hungarian market. This is followed by Ryanair, which was the second-largest with a 20.8 per cent share. Lufthansa was third with 7.3 per cent.

Wizz Air is a big player across Europe, and the Hungarian operation plays a key role. The airline’s Hungarian subsidiary, Wizz Air Hungary, had a €286 million profit in 2019. After taxation, Wizz Air lost €721 in the epidemic-hit year of 2020. The whole airline sector was in the red that year, not just Wizz Air.

There is no extra profit for the Hungarian-based airline. In its latest annual report for the financial year ending in March 2021, Wizz Air Holdings reported a loss of €482 million. Recovery has begun in the industry, traffic is starting to pick up, and the summer is looking promising based on bookings. Analyst consensus is that Wizz Air could have had an even bigger loss of €644 million for the financial year ending in March 2022. The consensus from Refinitiv suggests that even the current year could be loss-making, with a minus of €119 million.

It is highly likely that the Hungarian government is taxing a loss-making company.

Additional insights

The picture is made more complicated by another fact. The just now recovering sector is being hit hard by the rise in kerosene prices. Prices weigh heavily on airlines’ operating costs. Hedging is only a temporary solution, not a protection against the trend of price rises. All this combined has a major negative impact on the industry’s profit outlook.

Index reports that this is not the first time the Hungarian government uses taxation this way. Based on experience, they may be bolder in their exploitation on a sectoral level. A big question regarding Wizz Air is how they expect to pass on the extra tax to customers. All this might affect ticket prices, but that will depend on market competition.

Wizz Air scandal! A massive fight broke out on the plane – VIDEO

Wizzair fight

The cabin crew of the Hungarian low-cost airline had an extremely messy situation to sort out last week on the Gatwick-Crete flight. A group of rowdy Brits were drinking vodka, smoking and threatening other passengers on board. The unprecedented incident ended in a fight, during which the drunk passengers even hit the pilot. Read on for more details on the latest Wizz Air scandal!

According to the witnesses, the British passengers who started the fight were in their thirties and already drunk when they boarded the plane at Gatwick. On the flight to Crete, they even had another litre of vodka, making the situation even worse. In spite of the strict ban, the young British citizens were smoking on board and insulting other passengers during the journey. Meanwhile, they even made videos about their outrageous behaviour.

However, it was only at the point of landing that things got out of control. The drunk gang went wild when they were told that the Greek police were on their way to arrest them. They started a fight and beat those who tried to interfere, including the pilot – reported by Okosutas.hu.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDK1IR5dUA4

After the police arrived and escorted the hooligans away, all passengers and staff had to stay for questioning. Those waiting for their return flight only saw the delays increase, and eventually, the flight’s departure time had to be pushed back by 12 and then 24 hours.

Read also: Man wanted to open a Budapest-bound plane’s door: police investigating

According to experts, the Hungarian airline cannot be blamed for the consequences of the incident, including the long delay. However, it is questionable why the passengers, who were visibly intoxicated, were allowed on board and why they were served alcohol by the crew.

Last week, the Hungarian airline had to take responsibility for another unfortunate case. One of Wizz Air’s Paris-Budapest flights was canceled due to bad weather conditions. As a result of the unexpected storm, roughly 200 passengers were stranded at Paris-Orly Airport – reported 24.hu. In addition to the possibility of refunding or rebooking the ticket, the Hungarian airline also offered to cover the accommodation expenses of the victims or give a EUR 250 compensation. The passengers had to pick the most convenient option for them.

wizz air over budapest
Read alsoWizz Air launches a new airline

Passengers stranded after Wizz Air cancels flight to Budapest

plane

Wizz Air cancelled their Budapest flight, leaving over 200 passengers stranded at the Paris Orly Terminal. The people affected were only notified about the cancellation through SMS. Read below for details.

Trouble at the Paris Orly Terminal

Last Sunday, Wizz Air cancelled their Budapest flight due to a storm, reports 24.hu. The plane would have taken off at 9:55 pm from the Paris Orly Terminal. The people who were heading to Paris on the arriving plane had to disembark first in Brussels, and then they were taken back to Budapest. The passengers waiting in France were not notified by the Wizz Air staff in any way on what to do next. It was the airport staff who escorted them to a nearby hotel, but they could not give any further information on when to return to the airport. 

Over 200 people, several with children, were affected. Wizz Air was unresponsive, and according to reports, they only sent an SMS about the cancellation.

Wizz Air had failed to provide their passengers with further information before 24.hu published their article. Under regular circumstances, the hotel only allows guests to stay until noon, but their stay was eventually extended to 6 pm. The hotel also offered the unfortunate passengers basic meals apart from the accommodation.

Later, Wizz Air press services were compelled to further elaborate on the incident. The plane indeed failed to land at Paris Orly Airport due to the dangerous weather conditions. The safety of onboard passengers and staff was of utmost priority. They added that the plane which eventually landed in Brussels, did not continue its flight to Budapest afterwards. In the Belgian capital, passengers boarded buses that transported them to their destination.

Wizz Air responds

Wizz Air says that all passengers received information through email after the cancellation of their flight. In their letter, Wizz Air offered a detailed description of the unfortunate event, and further listed the available services to their passengers.

“According to our protocol, any passengers affected can retransfer their tickets to another flight or request a complete refund of their ticket purchase price. We will also cover the hotel expenses of our stranded passengers” the airline stated.

Hungarian Gripens scrambled because of bomb threat on Turkish aircraft

gripen

Hungarian Gripen fighter jets were scrambled by NATO’s Combined Air Operations Centre on Monday afternoon following a report of a bomb threat made on a Turkish Airbus passenger aircraft that had taken off from Poland, the Defence Ministry told MTI.

The aircraft, coming from Poland, entered Hungarian airspace in the Balassagyarmat area. The aircraft escorted the airliner to the Romanian border, then returned to the Kecskemét airbase, the Hungarian Air Ministry said.

As we wrote a week ago, unidentified aircraft detected at Hungary’s Eastern border again, fighters alerted

War breaking out between Romanian airlines and Hungarian WizzAir?

wizz air plane

The head of Wizz Air, the Hungarian low-cost airline, has harshly criticised Romanian airlines. He said they existed as zombies in the air transport market.

Zombies?

As Napi.hu reported, József Váradi, the head of low-cost airline Wizz Air, told the Cluj-Napoca news portal when he began to castigate the Romanian national airline Tarom and the country’s low-cost company, Blue Air. He said these two are practically zombies in the air transport market.

The European Union has relaxed the conditions for subsidies because of the losses caused by the pandemic but, according to Váradi, Tarom and Blue Air can only avoid bankruptcy with government money.

Aid by the EU

The Cluj-Napoca Chronicle reports that the Romanian national airline, Tarom, will receive €1.9 million in state aid. According to Transport Minister Sorin Grindeanu, the European Commission considered the aid to be in line with EU rules and thus approved it a few days ago. The sum of €1.9 million will be used by Tarom to cover damages caused by the pandemic between 1 July and 31 December 2020, iho.hu writes.

Critics

“Two Romanian airlines, state-owned Tarom and low-cost airline Blue Air, are on the verge of bankruptcy,”

Maszol quoted József Váradi, the CEO of Hungarian low-cost airline Wizz Air.

“We had significant losses in the two years of the epidemic, but our solvency was not affected,”

added Váradi.

“At the moment, Wizz Air is the only airline in Romania that is up to date with payments; we have paid everyone, even during the epidemic, according to the contracts in force,”

the CEO told a news portal in Cluj Napoca.

“The other airlines are not paying their suppliers because they are technically bankrupt, but they are being kept alive with government and state subsidies (…) I can talk about Tarom and Blue Air, these companies are in financial trouble; they are not paying, they are heading towards failure, bankruptcy,”

he added.

Negative predictions

According to Maszol, this is not the first time that József Váradi has made predictions about the future of Tarom. In 2018, he said that “it is only a matter of time before Tarom disappears”. Other Wizz Air executives have previously made it clear that the company would be happy to take Tarom’s place on the Romanian market in the case it went bankrupt.

According to Napi.hu, the head of Wizz Air is not talking nonsense when he talks about the bankruptcy of Tarom. The company has been operating at a loss since 2008, and at the end of 2020, its debt exceeded RON 1 billion (HUF 76.6 billion, EUR 202 million).

wizz air plane
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Unidentified aircraft detected at Hungary’s Eastern border again – fighters alerted

Hungarian fighter jet Gripen

Fighters of the Hungarian Air Force were alerted because of an unidentified aircraft at the Eastern border of Hungary for the second time in only three days.

Radars detected an unidentified aircraft yesterday, late in the evening. Therefore, the Hungarian Air Force warned the Gripens, which took off minutes later. According to the statement of the Hungarian Defence Forces, the Hungarian headquarters detected the unidentified flying object at 11 pm at the eastern border of Hungary. A Hungarian fighter flew there but found nothing. It remained there for patrolling, then returned to the Kecskemét airbase, telex.hu wrote.

It was the second time this week that Hungarian fighters were alerted because of an unidentified aircraft. The last alert was on Tuesday, but the Gripen flying there found nothing.

Featured image: illustration

Source: telex.hu

 

bomb threats
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Wizz Air announced new destinations for the summer: Ukraine is among them! – UPDATED

wizz air

The coronavirus pandemic has slowed down the trend of travelling abroad. Now that we seem to be coming out of it, it is the war that is a negative factor. This summer, however, Wizz Air will be launching more new flights from Hungary, and even the Ukrainian capital will be back on the list, among some new destinations.

Back to Ukraine?

As we have reported before, at the beginning of April, Wizz Air cancelled all its flights to and from Ukraine and Russia until the end of October, that is, the end of the summer timetable. Now, according to hvg.hu, Wizz Air is flying to Kyiv again this summer.

Flights to Kyiv are full for the first week of July, tickets are no longer available.

Apart from the flights to Kyiv, more destinations are added to the timetable for the summer. However, it will take some time for the airline industry to get back to 2019 levels, that is, the pre-pandemic levels. The executive vice president (henceforth: EVP) of Wizz Air told pénzcentrum.hu that he expects it to happen by 2024-25.

Expectations

Wizz Air EVP Jourik Hooghe said that “people’s need for mobility will restore the appetite for travel”, but the airline is more confident in the long-term recovery than the short-term. They believe the airline industry may be back to 2019 levels by 2024-25.

“In 2020, at the start of the pandemic, our turnover fell by more than 70 per cent. Initially, we put the airline into hibernation to minimise losses, while continuing to invest in our network and fleet to be stronger by the time the industry rebounds,”

Hooghe told pénzcentrum.hu.

“The last two years have proven once again that the ultra-low-cost model is the fastest way to respond in the aviation industry, and we were able to open new bases and launch new routes during the pandemic, while several airlines were in a state of near-bankruptcy,”

the EVP added.

New destinations

As Wizz Air reported back in January, the capital of Moldova, Chișinău, will soon be accessible from Hungary. What is more, from this summer, it will also be possible to fly from Debrecen to Corfu and Burgas, Bulgaria.

“One of Hungary’s most popular resorts, Hévíz, will soon be connected to Dortmund in Germany, while the winter schedule will see passengers flying from Budapest to Hurghada in Egypt and Aqaba in Jordan,”

Hooghe reported the good news.

UPDATE (04.24.)

Following our article, Wizz Air emailed us, emphasising that, based on their early-April announcement, they cancelled all flights to Russia until October 30. In the case of Ukraine, that cancellation was only until the end of June. However, even though there are bookable flights from July on their website, there are no real travel opportunities behind these. Therefore,

currently, nobody can travel to Kyiv.

They added that they keep monitoring the ongoing war in Ukraine. Once the authorities abolish the airspace closure, and travelling becomes safe again, Wizz Air is ready to launch flights to Ukraine.

 

Festetics Castle, Keszthely, Hungary, castle, building
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Hungarian Gripens scrambled because of bomb threat on Serbian aircraft!

gripen hungary

Hungarian Gripen fighter jets were scrambled by NATO’s Combined Air Operations Centre on Friday afternoon because of a bomb threat on a Serbian-registered passenger aircraft flying from Saint Petersburg to Belgrade, the defence ministry told MTI.

The Gripens escorted the A319 aircraft out of Hungarian airspace, the ministry said.

The jets were alerted for a second time on Friday afternoon for a similar reason, when a Moscow-Belgrade flight reported a bomb threat. The aircraft, also an A319, registered in Serbia, was escorted out of Hungarian airspace, the ministry said in a statement.

Russian plane Hungary nuclear fuel
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