Wizz Air

[TheLocalYokel]

Even if they didn't know what routes they flew there's still Wikipedia as a reference!

I shows the appalling level to which regional journalism has sunk these days. Apart from loose and erroneous reporting, spelling and sentence construction errors are to be seen everywhere within the regional titles. I don't know if there are such people as sub-editors these days. If there are they are as bad as the 'journalists' if the wayward spelling and grammar are allowed to be published without correction.

Many years ago the Bristol Evening Post, for example, had some gifted journalists whose work was always beautifully crafted and a joy to read.

 

[Rob c DSA]

Stated in some quarters its to make the company leaner and meaner more than anything.

 

[Marko1]

Summer 2021 now on sale. Katowice three weekly

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Summer 2021 now on sale. Katowice three weekly

Since Wizz took on Katowice from Ryanair in 2015 the loads have been very steady after the first year until 2019 when the annual passenger numbers increased by nearly 18% on the previous year:

2015 21,856
2016 42,789
2017 41,749
2018 42,941
2019 50,574

Putting the virus to one side, Wizz must believe that Brexit won't impact Polish people using the route very much.

In fact, January and February 2020 started pretty well for the Polish routes with the following passenger figure percentage gains /losses, January shown first:

Gdansk (Ryanair) +23% +20%
Katowice (Wizzair) +11% +40%
Krakow (easyjet and Ryanair) -9% -5%
Poznan (Ryanair) +2% +5%
Rzeszow (Ryanair) +5% +13%
Warsaw Modlin (Ryanair) -2% +7%
Wroclaw (Ryanair) +5% +1%

 

[kraktoa]

Never thought this would happen so soon

But Wizz Air have filed plans with ACL for 12th May onwards for flights into Bristol from Katowice. Twice weekly.

Whopppeeeee.......

 

[kraktoa]

Now postponed to May 26th.

 

[alphagolf]

Now postponed to May 26th.

Now postponed until 4th June, then operates 3 times a week thereafter.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

It seems that Wizz will resume Katowice this Saturday (20 June). They are selling flights for that day and thereafter at 2 x weekly (Tues and Sat) until the end of June, then 3 x weekly (Mon, Wed and Fri) from July.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

It seems that Wizz will resume Katowice this Saturday (20 June). They are selling flights for that day and thereafter at 2 x weekly (Tues and Sat) until the end of June, then 3 x weekly (Mon, Wed and Fri) from July.

A post in the Dried Plum says that flights between the UK and Poland have now been suspended until at least 30 June - some EDI-Poland flights have been cancelled today it seems.

A check with the Wizz Air booking engine now shows the first flights between Bristol and Katowice won't begin until 3 July, and fares for the first two days of operation are very high which might be an indication of Wizz's uncertainty about those flights too.

Poland travel advice

FCDO travel advice for Poland. Includes safety and security, insurance, entry requirements and legal differences.

www.gov.uk

 

[BRSregular]

So Wizz are to leave Bristol with the Katowice route ending on 17 July. Such a shame. So much potential with Wizz. I wonder why they don’t fancy Bristol?

 

[Jerry]

So Wizz are to leave Bristol with the Katowice route ending on 17 July. Such a shame. So much potential with Wizz. I wonder why they don’t fancy Bristol?

We can only assume it's not profitable enough for them or that they can make more money with the aircraft elsewhere.

 

[Marko1]

So Wizz are to leave Bristol with the Katowice route ending on 17 July. Such a shame. So much potential with Wizz. I wonder why they don’t fancy Bristol?

Is that official. Flights still listed just saying sold out. Could they just be re jigging the schedule

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Katowice has come and gone more than once. Ryanair did it from 2007-2009 and again from 2011-2014. After that Wizz Air took it on.

Ryanair has operated a lot of Polish routes and at the time the pandemic stuck operated Warsaw Modlin, Gdansk, Poznan, Rzeszow, Wroclaw and Krakow (the latter against easyJet). There must be something about Katowice although Ryanair have tried three other Police routes at BRS over the years that no longer operate: Bydgoszez, Lodz and Szczecin (Stettin).

In the last four years (going backwards from 2019) the total passenger numbers on the Katowice route were 50,574, 42,941, 41,759, 42,789, so a near 18% rise in 2019 over 2018, possibly partly due to an A 321 being introduced (I'm not sure when the larger aircraft began).

When Wizz was operating from BRS to Warsaw Chopin (against Ryanair's Warsaw Modlin), Sofia, Katowice and Kosice (Slovakia) the load factors in the main summer months were in the 90s% (even on the Kosice some months - Wizz only flies one route from Kosice these days, to Luton; it used to have a decent net work around Europe from there).

With load load factors showing a market (they would obviously have to find a satisfactory yield) it was perhaps strange that Wizz Air axed Warsaw Chopin and Sofia, given that Ryanair's BRS routes to eastern and central Europe have been operating for many years, with a small number of failures as instanced earlier in this post.

With Wizz expanding rapidly and now into sun routes and some western Europe city routes from the likes of Luton it might be that a one-route airport doesn't match their future plans and, with BRS well served by easyJet and Ryanair, the opportunity for them to set up a more wide-ranging programme at the airport would be limited, especially with the planning doubts existing over BRS's capacity to handle more than 10 mppa.

If Katowice has been axed Wizz Air would obviously have a good reason for doing so. Another reason might be poor forward bookings in the light of the pandemic.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Re my previous post, Wizz has reportedly cut routes from other airports including a number from BHX. I'll leave my previous post in the forum for reference but its contents are clearly redundant.

 

[BRSregular]

BHX and EDI are just left with 2 routes each now. 7 routes cut from Luton. They’re being ruthless

 

[Marko1]

I notice the days of operation have changed to mon weds and fri throughout the year - hence a frequency increase during the winter. The schedule is also there for next summer - so is it not a real possibility that they are readjusting the schedules ?

 

[Jerry]

I notice the days of operation have changed to mon weds and fri throughout the year - hence a frequency increase during the winter. The schedule is also there for next summer - so is it not a real possibility that they are readjusting the schedules ?

It'll be a case of wait and see, they seem to be announcing a lot of changes with many aircraft moving bases. So the route could actually stay.

 

[IanFarquharson]

Katowice is back !
Bookable 3pw up to Sept 2021

 

[Marko1]

Phew. Good news

 

[Red Flyer]

The problem was a system error plain & simple!! Just wish people would think & make sure anything they post is correct!! The industry is struggling without stupid statements that are factually incorrect!!