Wizz Air

“We are about to have a meltdown after 26 hours of waiting”, Wizz Air left Hungarians in London

Wizz Air London Luton Hungarian passengers

European airports and passengers are still struggling with chaos, delays and cancellations. The heatwave in the United Kingdom causes serious problems. A couple of days ago, the runway of the London-Luton Airport “melted”. As a result, flights from Budapest to London and from London to Budapest were delayed. Many were even cancelled. Many Hungarians remained stuck in the United Kingdom, blaming Wizz Air for not getting any help. Below you can read what exactly happened and how the airline finally helped them.

A complaining passenger

One of the travellers shared his experience with utazomajom.com, a Hungarian travel website. He said that Wizz Air provided no help or information after all the flights were delayed. Other companies organised taxis and accommodation for their passengers, but Wizz Air did nothing. “You leave people without food and drink in the middle of the heatwave hitting England”, he complained in an email. 

Even the police officers at Luton Airport could not track down Wizz Air’s employees. Furthermore, the next Wizz Air flight was scheduled to depart six days later.

Wizz Air did not help passengers find accommodation, taxi or new flight

The upset passenger wrote that they could have rebooked their ticket for GBP 350 instead of the original GBP 40. There was no accommodation within 10 kilometres of distance because other passengers were quick to storm to the nearby hotels and motels. The accommodation they found cost GBP 4-500/night. “We have been rotting here for 26 hours with no sleep in the past 40 hours”, he complained.

According to a Wizz Air statement published later, it was not their fault that their flight could not depart London-Luton. However, they helped their passengers to get home. They examined all possible options and reorganised their operation. As a result, a Wizz Air plane could take off in London on Wednesday afternoon. Consequently, the Hungarian passengers stuck in the British capital landed in Budapest at 5.20 pm.

Featured image: illustration

 

Budapest Airport queue useful
Read alsoWizz Air leaves passengers in France due to overbooking!

Chaos continues: here is how much delay to expect with Ryanair and Wizz Air flights

Wizz Air crew Hungarian airline

The air travel chaos has become an everyday problem. While every third Ryanair flight is delayed, WizzAir has got some issues with punctuality, too. On 19 July, for example, 22 percent of Hungarian WizzAir’s flights did not arrive on time. 

Thousands of late and cancelled flights

Thousands of late and cancelled flights, capacity problems and skyrocketing prices await travellers this summer. According to Forbes, we are lucky if we reach our destination on time this summer. Although tourism specialists were expecting a big comeback in the spring, their calculations were not right. On Monday, 18 July, more than 25,000 flights around the world were delayed, and 3,000 did not even take off, reports Forbes.hu.

wizz air plane
Read alsoWizzAir flight made emergency landing in Budapest due to bomb threat

22 percent of WizzAir’s flights did not arrive on time

Almost every third Ryanair plane (29 percent) is late, and 22 percent of Wizz’s planes did not reach their destination on time on 19 July. It is no wonder that, in addition to rapidly increasing ticket prices, this causes dissatisfaction among tourists. According to experts, the time of cancellations and delays is not over. Unfortunately, this “new normal” can be part of our lives for at least another year.

Why is there such a big chaos?

As we have written before, labour shortages at airports is one of the main issues. Among others, Budapest Airport suffered from the lack of workforce, too. Due to the pandemic, airports began to introduce downsizing. However, now more than ever, labour force is needed again. They simply cannot lure back people who moved to sectors that also provide a guaranteed livelihood during COVID.

Moreover, the mass retirement of the baby boomer generation of pilots creates problems. As veterans make up a fairly large part of the total workforce, airports cannot allow the retirement avalanche. In addition, professionals can get a license for single-pilot flights for 60 years, and for multi-pilot flights for 65 years.

Last but not least, spare parts orders and repairs also fell victim to the supply chain chaos. Due to the technical problems, many planes cannot take off.

Change of strategy by WizzAir?

Despite the structural problems and the excess profit tax, Wizz Air’s shares are worth buying according to the recommendation of Concorde’s analysts. At the beginning of July, they calculated a 61 percent appreciation potential in their analysis. Since their downgrade on 29 April, Wizz shares have fallen by more than 40 percent. Despite short-term risks, the share price, which has remained largely unchanged since the beginning of July, looks extremely cheap. “We expect that the dominant paradigm will change and the financing of national airlines will be cut off from the government coffers. As a result, Wizz’s strategy may prevail in the future,” says the analysis.

wizz air hungary
Read alsoWizz Air leaves Hungarians in London for two days

WizzAir flight made emergency landing in Budapest due to bomb threat

wizz air plane

At around 3:30 PM this afternoon, a plane flying over Hungary was forced to abort its flight and turn back to Liszt Ferenc International Airport, where it made an emergency landing.

Emergency landing due to a bomb threat

A Wizz Air flight was forced to interrupt its journey due to a bomb threat. The plane was already flying over Lake Balaton when the pilots were informed of the threat and immediately turned back to Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport. The passengers had to leave the plane via the emergency slide.

According to the aviation news website Airportal.hu, Wizz Air flight W6 5058 from Bari to Krakow was interrupted by a bomb threat, Blikk.hu writes.

The Airbus A321neo aircraft, registration HA-LGA, turned towards Budapest at the north-western part of Lake Balaton and started descending. The aircraft landed on runway 31R and then came to a stop in holding bay B5, where it was surrounded by firefighters. According to information, the passengers were evacuated on emergency slides.

Response from Wizz Air

The airline responded, as can be read in the article of Index.hu:

Wizz Air confirms that its flight W6 5058 from Bari to Krakow received an anonymous bomb threat on Wednesday, 20 July. Following the announcement, the aircraft made an emergency landing in Budapest. The aircraft crew and the airline’s operations control centre acted in accordance with the relevant protocol. The aircraft landed safely in Budapest and the authorities are currently carrying out the necessary checks to establish whether the threat was false. Passengers and crew have already been evacuated.

wizz air hungary
Read alsoWizz Air leaves Hungarians in London for two days

Wizz Air leaves Hungarians in London for two days

wizz air hungary

On Monday evening, around 20-30 Hungarians were due to fly home from Luton in England to Budapest. However, Wizz Air first postponed the flight several times and then cancelled the flight completely. The passengers have been waiting at the airport for a day, but did not know how and when they will get home.

Another cancelled flight from Wizz Air

The aviation sector is still suffering the effects of the coronavirus epidemic. Many cancellations, delays and increased waiting times have made travel chaotic. Even so, the stories of stranded passengers are shocking. This time, Wizz Air left passengers stranded at London-Luton airport.

Record high temperatures in England. Temperatures were around 39-40 degrees Celsius on Monday. This also paralysed traffic. Even the tarmac is melting in this heat, so Luton airport was closed for a few hours. The runway was later opened to allow planes to arrive and take off.

“We expected that our departure time would be delayed, and it was: from 8.30 PM to 10.10 PM, then 10.30 PM, and finally 0.10 AM. Other planes were delayed. Then, at 11 PM, all flights were cancelled. All hell broke loose, with thousands of people, 50-60 planes, sloshing around in transit. It was hot, even the walls were dripping with sweat. There was a feeling that there was going to be some kind of trouble, crashing and smashing, the atmosphere was very heated, but luckily it didn’t happen”, reports a reader of Telex.hu.

From the transit, police officers escorted people to an outside hall of the airport. No one from Wizz Air was at the airport to provide information. So no one knew when or how they would get home, or whether they would get overnight accommodation.

Budapest Airport
Read alsoBudapest Airport listed as 6th worst airport in Europe

The Foreign Office provided assistance

The passengers stranded at the airport called the Hungarian Foreign Office, who were very helpful. They took notes of the incident and in the morning, several consulate staff went to the airport, putting pressure on Wizz Air. NGOs and the consulate provided water and food to those waiting. They tried to look for alternative routes, but all flights to Budapest and to neighbouring airports were full.

“We’ve been here for more than 24 hours, I’ve been awake for 40 hours and there’s still no plane. Since then, no one from the airline has helped me in person or on the phone. No one from Wizz Air showed up on Tuesday morning either. In theory, the Luton airport staff are supposed to represent Wizz Air, but no one wants to accept responsibility. There has been no communication with us, this company is completely impotent in this area. It’s unacceptable that there is a service that we have paid for and they won’t even talk to us,” says the stranded passenger.

“This morning at dawn, we received a message from the Hungarian consulate that WizzAir is sending an exemption flight. If everything is true, we can leave for home at 5:20 in the afternoon.” a passenger informed 24.hu about the latest news.

Budapest Airport queue useful
Read alsoWizz Air leaves passengers in France due to overbooking!

The reply of Wizz Air

Below, you can read the letter from Wizz Air regarding the situation.

“On 18 July, Wizz Air was forced to cancel a total of five Hungarian-affected flights due to the extreme weather conditions in the UK. Due to the unusually hot weather, the runways at London Luton Airport were unfit for take-off and landing and the airport was closed to air traffic to ensure passenger safety.

Wizz Air started to organise accommodation for those stranded in London after the cancellations. However, as the extreme weather also affected other airlines’ flights, we have informed our passengers that if they can book their own accommodation, they will be refunded the extra costs. In addition, the airline offered passengers a number of options, including rebooking on alternative Wizz Air flights, a full refund of the ticket price or a 120% credit on the passenger’s WIZZ account.

Today (Wednesday) at 3:00 PM, Wizz Air will operate an extraordinary flight service from Budapest to London Luton Airport, from where the flight will return to Budapest with the passengers stranded in London at 5:20 PM local time later today. WIZZ has informed passengers of the departure of the emergency flights by e-mail and SMS.”

Wizz Air leaves passengers in France due to overbooking!

Budapest Airport queue useful

Several passengers on the flight towards Nice, France, were unable to board a Wizz Air plane. The departure was delayed for almost an hour and a half due to the problem. Continue reading below for more details on the event.

Eighteen people were denied boarding at Liszt Ferenc Airport for Wizz Air flight W62263 to Nice on Friday, Szeretlek Magyarország reports. At the boarding gate, the staff said they were not allowed to board the plane because there was an overbooking. Apparently, eighteen more tickets were sold than there were seats.

A delayed and overbooked Wizz Air flight

“Most of the people were still standing in the complaint queue when the PA announcer was giving the last warning for the flight. A French gentleman in the queue was talking about how he used to work for an airline before he retired. There were always cases of overbooking, but he had never heard of more than 3-4 people being sold extra tickets,” says the above source. They add that the flight was delayed anyway.

“At 50-minute delay, we’ve already been told that if someone doesn’t get off, we can’t leave. They asked anyone who heard their name to come forward, but no one did. The consensus was that they were looking for a volunteer willing to travel two days later for the flight to be able to depart. There was a lot of dissatisfaction,” the above source continues.

Do delays infringe on passenger rights?

The Romanian consumer protection has imposed a fine of EUR 2,000,000 (HUF 818,000,000) on a Romanian airline. The low-cost airline Blue Air was fined due to repeated flight cancellations.

The authority said that this is the largest fine ever imposed on a company. The investigation was launched following 924 complaints received. The authority’s decision means that the airline must reimburse customers within 10 days for tickets sold. It was also ordered that the company must no longer place on the market services that it cannot provide due to lack of staff or other technical reasons.

In addition, consumers have been advised not to buy tickets from airlines that have cancelled several of their flights recently, reports Profitline. The authority also warned low-cost airlines Wizz Air and Ryanair for violating consumer’s rights in the wake of the cancellations.

Featured image: illustration, Budapest Airport

Brutal ticket price rise at Hungarian Wizz Air

A Hungarian news outlet noticed that the Hungary-based low-cost airline, Wizz Air, increased ticket prices significantly in just one step. Furthermore, the company also standardised the prices. Below, you can read the details.

Wizz Air increased prices significantly and without explanation

According to okosutas.hu, they wanted to write an article about Wizz Air’s low prices. For example, they found tickets to Oslo and Porto for only 3,980 HUF (less than 10 EUR). Moreover, Barcelona was reachable from Budapest for only 10,000 HUF in September (25 EUR). However, suddenly the Hungarian airline increased its prices and standardised them. They created two categories: 5,940 HUF (EUR 15) and 15,740 HUF (39 EUR).

The traditionally cheap flight routes fall into the first category: Brussels (Belgium), Milan (Italy) and Burgas in Bulgaria. However, most prices went up to 39 EUR, including Porto, Oslo, Paris, and London. Okosutas.hu says that

all ticket prices changed accordingly until next March.

The only exceptions are those routes that have been more expensive than the 39 euro threshold. For example, Tenerife and Dubai remained above that amount. The news outlet argued they did not know whether what happened was an error or an intentional standardisation. However, they promised they would follow the news related to the issue.

Wizz Air CEO warns that travel problems cannot be solved quickly

József Váradi, the CEO of the low-cost Hungarian airline, talked about the problems the flight and travel sector are struggling with in a Politico podcast. “There is no quick fix to the aviation industry’s problems”, he highlighted. He added that governments underestimated the sector’s recovery speed after the pandemic and called the strikes of the airport workers “incredibly unhelpful.”

Politico.eu says traffic this summer is expected to reach more than 90 percent of the pre-covid level. However, there are staff shortages and strikes. The results are queues at the airports, delays, and cancellations.

“I don’t think anyone should be expecting a sudden improvement,”

Váradi said. He added that the airline made changes to its flying patterns to try and avoid disruption.

Váradi slammed the governments, saying that they did not do everything for a quick restart in the sector. “Air-traffic management is a state-run organization, so governments should have done a lot better in terms of anticipating what’s coming, and making sure that their systems are up to speed to satisfy demand,” he said. “This is the time to serve the travelling public, who are also voters for governments. The public interest is to make sure we go through this period as smoothly as possible.

We don’t need any further distraction“,

he added.

Panic in Milan: Hungarians were denied to board Wizz Air’s flight

Wizz Air

People were baffled when they were denied boarding Wizz Air’s late-night flight to Budapest at the airport of Milan a couple of days ago even though they had a valid ticket. A Hungarian woman was in a panic, crying and repeating “I have run out of heart medicine, I must make it home.” Everybody wanted to know when they could depart the earliest. Fruzsina Fridel, a famous Hungarian celebrity, shared the dramatic details with a popular Hungarian tabloid. Below you can read what happened to them.

Have you heard about overbooking?

Labour shortage hit flight airlines hard globally. Therefore, flight delays and cancellations became usual at many European airports, including Budapest’s Liszt Ferenc International Airport. We wrote about that issue in THIS article. Fruzsina Fridel, an anchorwoman of the commercial Hungarian TV2 channel, arrived home later than expected because of that. She flew to Milan for a concert last Friday, but she did not face any problems then. However, their return flight was a disaster.

“I have never heard before about overbooking. But that is what happened to us” – Ms Fridel told Bors. She learned that some airlines sell more tickets than seats because some passengers regularly do not show up. As a result, the airlines can keep the seats occupied, raise their flight utilisation rate and increase their profit. However, staff faces insoluble problems provided everybody arrives.

Compensation and apologies

“We did the check-in and queued in line when an airline employee started to call the names of the passengers who could not board”

– Ms Fridel said. Everybody was baffled and tried to get information on what to do.

“There was a mother-daughter duo where the woman was crying because she ran out of her heart medicines” – she added. There was an Italian family, the kids could board but the parents were denied. “They had to fight to take their children off the plane. Finally, a bus transferred us to a four-star hotel in Legnano, where we could stay the next day and received food and drinks. We finally made it home one day later.

The company apologised and gave EUR 250 compensation.

Ms Fridel and her friend were in Milan for the Guns’n’Roses gig, which she described as the concert of her life. “I have been a fan since I was 13. We rocked together with 70,000 people, and it was totally worth it despite the one-day delay” – she concluded.

 

Strikes, flight delays and cancellations – here is the Wizzair’s plan

Runway Wizz Air

The Hungarian low-cost airline, Europe’s fastest-growing one, today provided an update on its first-quarter results ahead of its Q1 F23 earnings release on 27 July 2022. In the announcement, they shared their plans on how they would like to address the sector’s problems. These are the strikes challenging every European airport, the flight delays and cancellations we reported many times and the labour shortage. Below you may read their announcement.

According to the company’s statement, Wizz Air continued to ramp up its operation against a challenging macro and operational backdrop.

Q2 F23 outlook

Despite the factors impacting Q1 F23, the Company is expecting a material operational profit in the second quarter of the FY (July – September) as revenue and pricing momentum is expected to continue to improve, as we highlighted during the full year results release.

  • We expect continued RASK improvement on the back of higher fares and improving load factors, resulting in a high-single digit RASK improvement for the quarter vs. F20. Load factors as of July improve to above 90% and the fare environment remains strong, with industry capacity reducing and consumer demand over summer strong.
  • We expect our higher fleet utilization to help to further improve our ex-Fuel CASK, returning towards historical ex-Fuel CASK levels for the quarter and as we reduce the operational impact of disruptions.
  • To be able to avoid cancellations and secure a more punctual operation to our customers, we have

further improved the agility and resilience of our network including adjusting schedules where we have seen a higher occurrence of issues (e.g. slot allocation issues, turn-around timings).

In total for the peak summer period we expect to reduce utilization a further 5% versus the plan outlined at the full year results to reduce the impact of ongoing external disruptions. We now expect summer ASK growth to be around 35% versus F20.

Read also: Reader’s letter: Wizz Air employee verbally abused passengers

Q1 F23 highlights

  •  ASKs for the quarter were 30% higher versus F20, growing sequentially month-on-month as most restrictions from Covid-19 were being discontinued during the March-May 2022 period and as the capacity reallocation related to the war in Ukraine started to take effect during the course of the April-June 2022 quarter.
  • RASK for the quarter was down -10% versus F20, with net fares in line with F20 but load factor at 85%, down 9 ppts, reflecting the efforts of Wizz Air to pass through higher input cost in its fares. RASK sequentially improved month on month with April and May at -14% versus the respective month in F20, and June RASK was at -1.5% on the back of higher net fares (+6% vs F20).

Read also: Budapest Airport: 10-15 flights to be cancelled a week due to chaos in Western Europe

  • Ancillary revenues for the quarter were up 14% over F20, or 34.2 EUR/pax (up 4.1 EUR/pax vs F20), and, ticket fares were down 12% versus F20.
  • Fuel CASK for the quarter was up 94% versus F20 driven behind an average fuel price of 1,239 USD/mT. The Company has recently announced F23 ‘insurance’ hedge coverage levels, which have been completed, and, a return to systemic hedging starting as of F24.
  • Ex-Fuel CASK for the quarter was up 16% versus F20, at 2.62cts versus 2.27cts in F20, of which disruptions drove an 0.22cts increase versus F20, an increase of around 50m EUR. The balance of the ex-Fuel CASK increase versus F20 was largely driven by a 10% lower than historical utilization during the quarter, given the gradual ramp up month on month.
  • The strength of the USD at the end of the quarter (1.04 vs. EUR) compared to the start of the quarter (1.11 vs. EUR) drove an unrealized FX loss on the Company of 136m EUR. This is a non-cash impact. The impact is driven by a revaluation of the USD lease liabilities on the balance sheet of the Company. This impact will reverse should the EUR regain strength relative to the USD during the next months and quarters, nevertheless, the spot rate saw a further strengthening of the USD versus the EUR (1.02 vs EUR).
  • Cumulatively, the unrealized FX losses, the cost of disruptions and the lower utilization in the quarter, combined with the pricing environment especially in April and May 2022 drove an operating loss of 285m EUR for the quarter and a net reported loss of around 450m EUR (also including the unrealized FX losses).
  • Wizz Air’s liquidity remains strong with the cash balance at the end of the quarter improving to around 1,570m EUR and the Company continues to maintain its investment grade rated balance sheet position.

Reader’s letter: Wizz Air employee verbally abused passengers

Wizz Air crew Hungarian airline

“On the 30th of June, I arrived at the airport. My flight from Warsaw to Bergamo was scheduled for 6:45 pm. The flight was delayed twice, then canceled” – one of our readers shared her nightmare story with us via email. Below you can read her letter substantially unchanged.

Around 9:30 pm we received a notice of cancellation. All the passengers were advised to go to the customer service. I was second in line, and a representative of Wizz Air collected my personal details asking if I would like to reschedule my reservation. She went to the room and I assumed she was working on booking my next flight and making reservations for the hotel. There were two more Wizz Air employees assisting passengers.

As I was waiting I heard from the person on the right that they were trying to reschedule for the next day but no flight was scheduled. At almost 11 pm, a person who I believed was helping me returned to the counter and asked if I needed anything. You can imagine my confusion. I simply asked if she forgot about me. At this point, emotions at the counter were rising because an employee of the airline denied assistance and advised passengers to make reservations for the hotel independently and call Wizz Air the next day.

By midnight, several passengers received confirmation about the flight scheduled for 2nd and 3rd of July but no word from the hotel. Some of the passengers booked flights for different airlines and made hotel arrangements independently.

I agreed to take a flight on the 2nd of July and asked for a hotel room.

Wizz Air employees refused to provide support for hotel reservations arguing that they were not obliged to do so.

I requested an employee ID and said that I would make reports. That was the moment when the Wizz Air representative raised his voice, telling me to get out of the airport otherwise he would call security and “make sure I would never be able to enter the airport again and set my foot on the plane”. Other passengers overheard the argument and took my side offering support and providing their phone numbers in case confirmation from witnesses was needed. An old couple wrote their name and number stating “you report this and we will confirm everything that happened”. More than 10 people offered their support and gave their phone numbers.

I firmly stood my ground saying that I would not leave until I got a hotel room since my flight was in two days and I had no place to go.

Employees of the airline continued to be extremely rude but had printed confirmation for the hotel for me and other passengers. Transportation was not available though. People who had been waiting for the bus for two hours decided to take a taxi or an Uber. I was among a group who left the airport around 4 am by Uber paid by my credit card. Hotel was almost 30km away from the airport.

On the 2nd of July, the flight was canceled again, I lost valuable time and missed two important meetings. No other flights were available. LOT had openings for the 3rd of July but the tickets cost over USD 500. Finally, I decided to take the bus along with a couple other passengers. The trip to Bergamo took 27 hours and I had to change buses three times.

Shocking stories revealed by passengers about flight delays and cancellations

budapest airport

Flight delays and cancellations are extremely common this summer. You probably would not guess the type of dangers that passengers face in this situation: theft, loss of money or lack of accommodation for the night. Here are some passenger nightmare stories.

In recent weeks, hundreds of passengers have been stranded at airports in London, Rome and Paris due to flight delays and cancellations. They complained about having to wait for several hours, not being informed about the reason for the delay/cancellation and even being refused to get a refund after the incident.

As we previously reported, the Hungary-based low-cost airline, Wizz Air left several passengers at the Paris-Orly airport without proper assistance in June. Soon after, the low-cost airline revealed that the reason for the cancellation was the air traffic control labour shortage, due to which their flights suffered delays, and their colleagues could not fly back to Budapest before the airport’s closure. Still, the incident caused many difficulties for several passengers.

Being robbed at the airport

A Hungarian couple recalled that they got back to the airport for the second time because their flight had been cancelled by WizzAir the previous day. Still, they were told late in the evening that their flight would be further delayed. The inconvenient situation turned into a real nightmare after the couple was robbed at Charles de Gaulle Airport. All their documents, bank cards and cash were stolen. Regarding the flight cancellation, the airline informed them in a text message at the Paris airport that they would be reimbursed. However, later on, they were refused to get reimbursement due to „exceptional circumstances.”

No accommodation was provided

However, not only the compensation, but in certain cases the promised service (accommodation due to flight delays or cancellations) fails to go through. Several passengers reported that the French staff at the Paris airport tried to help them, collecting their contact details and promising them accommodation, but nearly two hours later they said they could not provide it. The stranded passengers needed to take care of their own accommodation, otherwise, they would have spent the night under the stars. The passengers did not receive any information on reimbursement or compensation which was later rejected on the grounds of exceptional circumstances.

Passenger could not board due to overbooking

An unusual case was reported by the Hungarian news portal Noizz. The case happened last week on the Budapest-Mallorca Ryanair direct flight when it turned out before departure that there were more passengers than seats. When the last passenger boarded the plane, the cabin crew noticed that someone could not take a seat. As a result of the overbooking, the boarding passes of two passengers showed the same seat. What is quite surprising is that the overbooking had not been noticed before at the check-in desk, only after all the passengers got on board.

The staff then asked the passengers if anyone would like to volunteer to get off. The cabin crew even offered 250 euros for a volunteering passenger who would agree to be transferred to Mallorca the following day. Despite this substantial sum, none of the passengers volunteered, and the flight was already an hour and a half late. Eventually, after a phone call to a supervisor, the crew chose the unlucky person, a young man travelling alone, who was led off the plane. According to witnesses, the situation was very distressing.

Separated family

Another extreme case was revealed by a Hungarian family who wanted to return to Budapest on 22 June on an EasyJet flight from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport but their flight was cancelled. The concerned passengers were navigated by airport staff to the EasyJet desk, where they received a brochure with information about the options. They were told that they could book an EasyJet flight for 24 June, two days later. Still, no information was given as to the reason for the cancellation. By this time, the passengers received several emails from the airline including their apologies and information on their refund policy.

As an alternative, some passengers bought a ticket on the Wizz Air flight from Orly Airport the same evening, which finally took off with a negligible delay. Allegedly, the reason was the lack of air traffic controllers in Austria and Switzerland. Eventually, one-half of the Hungarian family returned home with this flight. However, several passengers – including some members of the separated family – needed to figure out another solution due to the lack of seats on the Wizz Air flight. In the end, the remaining 8 people took a Ryanair flight home from an airport 100 kilometres away from Paris. They still do not understand how it was possible to buy three batches of tickets in one hour, at three different prices – reported by the Hungarian news portal Index.

The passengers concerned have also claimed a refund from the airline. Not surprisingly, this also resulted in an incomprehensible situation. Although they received a refund, two families were credited with half the original price and one with a third, for no reason. The claim for EU reimbursement was rejected for all of them, referring to exceptional circumstances.

Compensation options

One of the most basic forms of passenger compensation is a refund of the ticket price, which can be offered in three ways. They can refund the amount paid for the ticket – and, in the case of a connecting flight, transport the passenger to the airport of departure as soon as possible – rebook the flight, or change the booking to the date of the passenger’s choice. If the airline does not offer to rebook the flight or return the passenger to the airport of departure at the earliest possible time, they will have to refund the amount paid for the ticket. If, on the other hand, the passenger is not given the choice between a refund and rebooking, but the airline decides to refund the ticket price at its own discretion, the passenger has the right to ask for an additional refund to cover the difference in the price of the new ticket.

It is important to note that if the passenger has bought two separate tickets for the outward and return journey with different airlines, the refund will only be available for the flight that was cancelled. Alternatively, if the two flights operated by different airlines are part of a single return ticket, a refund can be claimed if the outward flight is cancelled, or the passenger can choose to receive a full refund (return) or rebook on another flight.

The amount of compensation can vary from EUR 250 to 600, depending on how far the passenger is travelling. The former can be claimed for journeys of up to 1500 kilometers. Between 1500 and 3500 kilometres, the compensation is EUR 400, while over 3500 kilometres the maximum is EUR 600. However, there are also exceptional circumstances that exempt the airline from paying compensation.

Exceptional cases: no compensation needs to be provided

According to EU legislation, such exceptional circumstances include decisions taken by air traffic management systems, political instability, adverse weather conditions, safety risks, unexpected safety deficiencies and strikes affecting the airline’s operations. Or, regarding the cancellation of the Paris flight, „such extraordinary circumstances, which could not have been avoided despite all reasonable measures.” – written in the official letter of Wizz Air.

Assistance obligation

However, EU law also states that airlines must provide assistance at the airport if the passenger decides to rebook or return to the airport of origin. This assistance includes food and drink, accommodation (if the flight you have rebooked departs the next day), transfer between the airport and accommodation, two phone calls, telex, faxes or e-mails. However, if this assistance is not provided and the passenger pays for all the above, the airline must reimburse the costs. All receipts and invoices must be submitted.

Further chaos to come

According to Index, in the upcoming months, further flight delays and cancellations can be expected at several European airports due to strikes by airlines and ground handling staff at some locations, as well as technical problems. Employees on strike are generally demanding higher wages and improved working conditions. Labour shortages can also pose issues as air traffic has more or less returned to its normal flow as the coronavirus epidemic subsided. These factors can cause flight cancellations, delays and slow security checks during the summer period.

Budapest Airport queue useful
Read alsoPassengers had to spend the night at Budapest Airport

Reader’s letter: continuous Wizz Air cancellations in Paris

Budapest Airport queue useful

“My original flight with Wizz Airlines from Budapest to Paris (ORLY) was on June 23rd, but I experienced a lot of difficulties with the flight. I write this on behalf of myself and other passengers,” our reader wrote to us. You can read the letter substantially unchanged below.

Another passenger that I spoke to stated they booked an EasyJet flight for their first day, then that was cancelled only to have the Wizz Air flight cancelled the next day. Another person had their plane cancelled three times. My flight has been cancelled twice.

wizz air flight airport
Photo sent via email.

On Thursday evening, June 23rd, the flight was supposed to leave at 7:05 PM, but it was delayed and cancelled. Departure was delayed until 7:45 PM. I arrived at the gate, and waited to board the plane. I saw the plane arrive. While waiting until 7:42 PM, I received an announcement that the flight was cancelled from the airport employees. No explanation was given.

We didn’t receive any help for rebooking or accommodations. Nothing was announced about rebooking or accomodations at all. The Wizz airline app would not allow rebooking and online agents were unhelpful because they tried to book me at a later date. I was able to access Wizz through the online website and book it for Friday evening, June 24th.

On Friday evening, June 24th, the flight was delayed and cancelled again. The original departure time was 5:20 PM. It was delayed until 8:45 PM. We all boarded the plane, waited inside the plane, then we were told that the departure was cancelled. We were told that Air traffic control finally gave Wizz a time slot, but the arrival time to Paris would be too late. The ORLY airport would be closed on arrival.

We waited on the plane for 30 minutes to 1 hour. We were off the plane before 10:30 PM. We were told to contact Menzies at the airport for rebooking and accommodation. Some of us waited hours to have our flights rebooked or receive information about compensation. I was booked for a flight on the upcoming Tuesday, June 28th. I was told that I would be given hotel accommodations until Tuesday.

After 12:00 AM, we received information about our hotel for the night. They did not pay for our transportation. We all arrived after 2:00 AM. The hotel was unaware of our arrival time and did not receive an invoice. They only knew that they had 10 rooms for 20 people. 17 of us showed up. We had to share rooms with strangers. It was uncomfortable. They only had one night booked for us even though a few of us were rebooked to stay longer.

The next day, June 25th, those of us staying longer and stranded in Budapest realized that we needed to contact Wizz airline or Menzies for longer hotel accommodation. We tried to call Wizz and Menzies, but neither were helpful. Wizz Airline stated they did not help with hotel accommodations. Menzies did not have a working phone number to be reached.

wizz air flight airport
Photo received via email.

Another passenger and I returned to the airport and we spoke to Menzies. The other passenger was supposed to wait and depart on Friday, July 1. We waited 4 hours at the airport. Menzies rebooked us to the next departure time for June 26th with hotel accomodations. Menzies was able to contact Wizz Airline about moving the departure time, but was unable to contact them about hotel accommodations. Menzies decided to pay for our airport transfer, meals, and hotel accommodations. We hope that Wizz Airline was able to reimburse Menzies for it though.

On June 26th, my plane finally took off with a short delay. My original flight time was 12:35 PM which was earlier in the day, but it was delayed until 1:35 PM. I was finally able to make it to my destination.

Please share our stories to encourage these airlines to have better care and service as well as consider canceling flights in advance if they are aware of staff shortages and issues.

wizz air hungarian airline plane
Read alsoReader’s letter: WizzAir left Madeira-London flight passengers in trouble

Reader’s letter: WizzAir left Madeira-London flight passengers in trouble

wizz air hungarian airline plane

“I’m very astonished at the poor service myself and roughly 50 other passengers have received from WizzAir. I have spoken to my lawyer and BBC News and the word will come out because it’s truly unbelievable behaviour from your company!” – the passenger started his letter he forwarded to us. Below you can read it substantially unchanged.

A flight from Madeira Funchal to London Gatwick got cancelled on Friday 17th June 2022. Some passengers managed to grab a flight the next day or on Monday. In my case, they couldn’t find one for me until the next Friday. However, I spoke up and told them it was unacceptable as I could see they were just being lazy sending people in various directions for information. They then found one for Tuesday 21st June 2022 for me.

The next step was finding a hotel and means of transport for these passengers for however long their stay was, that’s when the real problems started. We had been at the airport from 5pm and they didn’t inform us about a hotel until about 10:30pm. They then proceeded to tell us that transport wasn’t available and every passenger had to find their own way to the hotel.

Our taxi from the airport to the hotel cost us €90!!

I asked a staff member if our hotel room was booked until Tuesday, which was the day of the next flight available they had for myself and my partner, and they said yes! We proceeded to go to the hotel tired and very hungry to then be told by the staff at the hotel that no, it was only a one-night stay. We stayed calm of course because this wasn’t the hotel’s fault and we were too hungry to sort anything out at the time, as it was already 11:30pm when we arrived there.

We went out and explored the area as we wanted to find somewhere we could have something to eat, however all kitchens were closed, but luckily enough, a kind man who owned one of the bars saw we were stressed and struggling so he opened the kitchen for us and made us a quick sandwich which was very delicious! I went back to the bar everyday while I was there to eat, to thank him and because his food was AMAZING!

The next day arrived and the airport and the hotel tried to get into contact with WizzAir; however WizzAir was NOT helping at all… The hotel staff really helped us a lot by extending our stay in our rooms until 6pm, they didn’t have to do that but they had more of a heart than WizzAir did, and they didn’t want to leave us stranded. WizzAir finally decided to extend the stay for another day with dinner included to ‘make up for the trouble caused’. WizzAir also told the hotel that they were going to sort out the extended stay early in the morning so passengers weren’t worried. During this whole period, the passengers were left clueless with no information whatsoever.

The next day arrived and WizzAir gave misinformation again: they did not sort it out early, instead they ignored passengers’ calls, hotels’ calls, and airport calls and at 6pm, the passengers got told to deal with it ourselves! We pretty much all got stranded! Not acceptable at all!! I called WizzAir customer service a good few times and they hung up the phone on my face twice as I was explaining the situation to them. Very unprofessional. I asked them to transfer the call over to someone who could help me and they didn’t, they kept telling me to email them. But why should I email them at an urgent time like this? By the time they reply, I would have been back in London. I asked them a simple question: ‘is WizzAir really
going to leave 50+ passengers stranded on an island?’ The person on the other end didn’t know how to reply to that.

The outcome at the end was that all passengers had to pay for their own transport and hotel and food and drink and then keep the receipts so WizzAir could give us the money back. But the only issue is that people come on holiday with enough money for themselves for the stay so money was very minimal for everyone. And people who work are also missing days which means less money when they get back… and another 3-4 days stuck in a different country is very costly when buying breakfast, lunch and dinner, keeping hydrated, ect. How long are they going to take to give all passengers this money back? Do they even have enough money to pay everyone back? Because me and my Partner alone spent about €250 extra on food and drink to survive and we didn’t have a hotel room to stay in so we slept at the beach with the cockroaches, rats and crabs for 2 days. So imagine how much other people spent on hotels, food, drink, ect.

Wizz Air explained why they left passengers in France & UK without help

wizz air hungarian airline plane

Wizz Air passengers wrote to Hungarian media outlets that they were left without proper help by the low-cost airline in Paris and London. People argued that Wizz Air did not acknowledge first that their flight was cancelled. Later they admitted that but offered no help for their passengers, who had to find accommodation, food, and drink in the French and British capital and rebook their flight. Some of them did not even speak the language. Here is Wizz Air’s explanation.

What happened?

As we reported yesterday, the Hungary-based low-cost airline, Wizz Air, left several passengers at the Paris-Orly airport without proper assistance. One of the victims wrote her story to Blikk. Orsolya stated that the most unpleasant thing was not the cancellation itself. It was the fact that she could neither rebook nor cancel the flight because she had already checked in, as Wizz Air only sent information messages about delays in the beginning.

Orsolya said that the company did not help them find accommodation for the night after it was clear their flight would not take off. Last weekend, a very similar case occurred. Wizz Air cancelled a flight commuting between London and Budapest but, allegedly, provided no proper help for the passengers.

The Hungarian low-cost airline sent a statement on the issue to Blikk, a Hungarian tabloid. In short, the company said

their delays were caused by the labour shortage the air traffic control struggled.

They added that they would refund their passengers and launch an investigation into yesterday’s Paris-Orly case.

Wizz Air’s explanation – labour shortage

They highlighted that they did everything to provide punctual service for their passengers. However, labour shortage hits hard not only the air traffic control but also the airports, the ground, baggage handling and security services. As a result, there are delays, which, due to the strict air safety rules, result in flight cancellations.

In the case of the Paris-Orly cancellation, that is what happened. Because of the air traffic control labour shortage, their flights suffered delays, and their colleagues could not fly back to Budapest before the airport’s closure. The statement clears that they notified their passengers via SMS and email about the delay.

They added that they have a partner company taking care of the people in case of cancellations. Wizz Air promised they would launch an investigation in the Paris-Orly case. If they found problems, they would act accordingly.

They offered alternative flights, refunding the ticket cost or crediting 120% of it on the passenger’s Wizz account. They added that they would try to process all requests in one week. Furthermore, passengers have the right to demand compensation on the company’s website, wizzair.com.

Systematic problem

Blikk says that the problem is more extended than just cancelling individual flights. EasyJet, for example, cancelled hundreds in May because of an IT problem. Lufthansa announced that they would do so with more than 2,000 flights because of the labour shortage at the Frankfurt and München airports. Thus, the problem is systematic.

Budapest sightseeing tram
Read also Budapest transport prices, fines may increase significantly!

WizzAir left several passengers at the airport without help

WizzAir

Once again, the Hungarian low-cost airline WizzAir has left several passengers at the airport without assistance. A flight from Paris to Budapest was cancelled, leaving many stranded at Orly airport.

The flight was cancelled

The passenger from Paris Orly airport, a woman who was travelling from a medical conference to Budapest on Friday evening, told Blikk about the inconvenience of the trip. WizzAir, once again, left passengers at the airport without any help. The flight was cancelled. As Telex.hu writes, the most unpleasant thing is not the cancellation itself, but the fact that the doctor who sent the letter to Blikk could neither rebook nor cancel the flight, because he has already checked in, as WizzAir only sent information messages about delays in the beginning.

“Finally, an airport cleaning lady took us to a small monitor that said in French that our flight had been cancelled. It was around 20:30, but it wasn’t until 22:07 that WizzAir finally sent us a message that the flight had been cancelled. The message also said that it was possible to rebook or cancel the flight and then get a 120% refund. Except that in the app you can neither rebook nor cancel, as the check-in has already taken place. It only allows cancellations for flights that are ahead of us in time,” the passenger, Orsolya, told Blikk.

Brussels Airlines
Read alsoBrussels Airlines cancels flights to and from Budapest

There was no information

People were waiting at the airport to no avail. There was no information, passengers were left high and dry. “We wanted to book the flight in the app the next day, but it was already full. We managed to call our acquaintances at home, who were able to book a WizzAir plane from Hungary at Beauvais Airport on Saturday at 4 pm.” –  Orsolya said on Saturday morning. Fortunately, the organizers of the medical conference provided a room for one more night at the hotel. Orsolya thinks they got lucky, but feels sorry for people who could not solve this issue.

This is not the first time WizzAir has done this

Last weekend, a very similar case occured. WizzAir cancelled a flight commuting between London and Budapest. First, passengers received messages that it was only a delay, but eventually, the plane would not take off. The company left almost 200 passengers in London. In addition, they could not rebook the flight, as the website did not operate.

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

Chaos: Wizz Air’s Budapest flight cancelled, hundreds stuck in London

Runway Wizz Air

One of the Hungarian media outlets received an angry email from a reader stating that a Wizz Air flight commuting between London and Budapest was cancelled. First, the Hungarian low-cost airline talked only about a possible delay. Later, they admitted that their flight would not take off. As a result, hundreds of passengers remained stuck in the British capital.

Some passengers do not speak English

According to index.hu, they have received an email today at dawn about the issue. The writing says that passengers waited more than four hours, and then Wizz Air cancelled their flight without explanation. The passenger said the Hungarian low-cost airline left them high and dry.

The company left almost 200 passengers in London, many of them having small children or Hungarians not speaking English. The disappointed passenger said that the rebooking website did not operate.

Later he wrote that Wizz Air sent him an email. Since the rebooking link did not function, he bought another ticket on the first Sunday morning flight from London to Budapest.

“I think there are many still at London-Gatwick, mostly those who do not speak English. I helped an elderly couple who have a relative in London, so they managed to buy a new ticket“,

the Hungarian man said.

Wizz Air apologized

Wizz Air apologized in an email. They wrote that they were committed to providing a seamless travel experience for their passengers. However, there are situations when unpredictable delays and cancellations happen, they added. Wizz Air highlighted that they had done everything to minimize the inconveniences. They wrote that they cancelled the 2222 LGW-BUD flight and listed the options for passengers. Among these was the ticket rebooking. But that subsite was out of order.

Provided that Wizz Air or airport crew could not help passengers with accommodation, transport, food or drinks, they should buy these and keep all the invoices. That is because Wizz Air will refund these costs later.

Another perspective

After Index published the first article, another reader wrote to them confirming the statements of the first one. He wrote that his wife and two underage children remained stuck at Gatwick airport. An airport employee popped up after their flight was cancelled and sent them out from the check-in. Afterwards, they received no further information. Wizz Air sent an email about the flight cancellation only hours later.

He bought new tickets, but they cost a lot more: 306 thousand HUF (EUR 765). Furthermore, they had to travel to Luton airport and buy sandwiches and drinks. Moreover, their car’s parking at Budapest Airport terminated at 4 AM, so they will have to pay a fine there. According to him, another Wizz Air plane arrived with a long delay in Milan, where the Italian tourists were outraged.

Economic development minister Márton Nagy against Ryanair
Read also Conflict escalating: Hungarian minister demands apology from Ryanair!

Wizz Air decided how to pass on the departure tax

Wizz Air-airport

Low-cost airline Wizz Air said on Tuesday that for tickets purchased before 1 July, the company will not pass on the costs of departure tax introduced by the government to customers.

Wizz Air said in a statement that the windfall tax effective from 1 July would most likely affect ticket prices, but the company will not transfer the legally regulated extra cost to passengers in the case of tickets already purchased.

Ticket prices are expected to increase as a result of the tax and higher fuel prices, the statement said. At the same time, changes in the price of airline tickets will be primarily determined by supply and demand, it added.

Wizz Air also said that the extra burden on airline companies would further weigh down a much-awaited economic recovery, not only for the company but for the whole of the economy. Air transport has suffered significant losses as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, with revenues and profits unlikely to return to pre-pandemic levels for a long time, it added.

Last week, the Budapest Municipal Government Office launched a consumer protection investigation against low-cost airline Ryanair for passing on the special tax to customers already in possession of tickets.

As we wrote earlier, Hungarian consumer protection launches investigation against Ryanair!, details HERE.

Read also:

What can passengers expect from Wizz Air and other airlines regarding the departure tax? – UPDATE

wizz air plane

For now, Wizz Air seems to be hesitating how to react, but passengers can expect pretty much the same with Ryanair. Let us have a look at what Wizz Air and other airlines will likely decide to do with the new departure tax. 

The Ryanair issue

Lately, Ryanair seems to be the talk of the media. The airline company first sharply criticised the new tax in its announcement and then informed passengers that it would pass it on to them.

In fact, it will charge the amount to passengers with a previously purchased ticket for flights departing from Budapest after 1 July.

Even a consumer protection investigation was launched against the airline company. According to the regulation, the airline tax called for contributions from the airlines to be paid by the ground handling companies. This means that the charge is shown to the airline as an item or expense re-invoiced by its local partner.

Ryanair’s actions were legal and fair

Clause 4.2.2 of the Ryanair General Conditions of Carriage for Passengers and Baggage, which is also referred to in their letter to the customers, states quite clearly: “the new tax (or the difference) must be paid before departure. But you can also choose not to travel and ask for a full refund of the booking cost.”

Ryanair not only acted exactly in accordance with its business rules but was also fair notifying passengers of the measure promptly.

ryanair plane
Read alsoHungarian consumer protection launches investigation against Ryanair!

What about Wizz Air?

Not surprisingly, Wizz Air hesitates to react, or else, the company wants to avoid an open conflict with the government. However, the company’s general conditions and terms settle this issue very clearly.

That being said, passengers who booked Wizz Air flights departing from Hungary after 1 July should look out for a notification, which can arrive any time. – reports airportal.hu.

According to the business rules: “By reserving these Business Rules, we reserve the right to expressly agree to the use of taxes and duties imposed and increased by governments, authorities or the airport operator between the date of issue of the Confirmation and the date of departure. Security Fees and Other Services Fees (if applicable to your trip) will be charged retrospectively.”

Other companies’ policies on the matter

KLM

4.2. Fees, taxes and charges: All fees, taxes or charges levied by governments, any other authority or the airport operator shall be payable by the passenger. These fees, taxes and charges may be levied or increased by a government, another authority or an airport operator after the ticket booking date. In this case, the passenger must pay the appropriate amount.

Air France

Article IV, 2. Other fees, taxes and charges: Such other fees, taxes, charges and costs may be set or increased after the Purchase of Tickets. In this case, the passenger is obliged to pay the appropriate amount.

Lufthansa

Taxes, fees and charges 4.3. All applicable taxes, fees and other charges imposed by the state or local government or by another authority, or by the operator of an airport with regard to the passenger, or for services provided to the passenger, shall be paid by you in addition to the airfare.

British Airways

4b3) Taxes, fees and charges change constantly and can be imposed or altered after the date we have issued your ticket. If they change or if a new tax, fee or charge is imposed after we have issued your ticket, you will have to pay us any increase.

Qatar Airways

Article 5/5: The taxes, fees and charges imposed on air travel are constantly changing and can be imposed after the date of ticket issuance. If there is an increase in tax, fee or charge shown on the ticket, you will be required to pay it. Similarly, if a new tax, fee or charge is imposed even after ticket issuance you will be required to pay it.

Easyjet

4.3. In the unlikely event that the state tax increases after you have made your booking, we may ask you to pay the extra to allow us to fly. If we ask you to pay the excess and you refuse to do so, you can cancel your booking and get your fare back.

budapest airport
Read alsoGovernment’s departure tax to result in more flight cancellations?!

UPDATE

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!