Wizz Air Abu Dhabi has discontinued ticket sales on its services from Abu Dhabi to Belgrade, Sarajevo and a number of other destinations in what is believed to be a major overhaul of the budget carrier’s network from its base in the Emirati capital.
The airline is scheduled to operate its final flight to Belgrade on July 19, while the final service to Sarajevo is currently scheduled on August 31. Other routes which are no longer on sale include Sofia (no longer operational), Varna (last flight July 14), Tirana (July 20), Kutaisi (July 29) and Cluj (no longer operational). The carrier has also suspended flights to Budapest (until September 1), Vienna (September 21), Krakow (from July 29 until September 19), Katowice (until October 26), Astana (November 1) and Samarkand (November 1). Further changes remain possible.
The airline has launched a dedicated hotline for passengers affected by flight cancellations to or from the United Arab Emirates. In a statement, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi said, “In the last few days, we have taken several steps to reach and inform the passengers concerned, but more than two thirds of them did not book their tickets directly with the airline (but through an online travel agency).
Therefore, the contact details of these passengers are not available to Wizz Air, as these online ticketing portals do not forward the contact details of the passengers to the airlines”. The carrier has set up a dedicated 24-hour hotline for those affected by UAE flight cancellations at +3616777530 (international roaming charges apply for this Hungary-based number). The carrier added, “If your outbound flight is operating as scheduled, but your return flight (inbound) is cancelled, you may request a full refund for your outbound flight by contacting our regular Call Center”.
Wizz Air Abu Dhabi is the sole operator between the Emirati capital and both Belgrade and Sarajevo. The carrier has maintained up to five weekly services to Belgrade on a year-round basis and a daily seasonal rotation to Sarajevo. Last year, the airline handled 82.883 passengers on its Belgrade service.
Like much of Wizz Air’s network over the past year and a half, its Abu Dhabi base has been impacted by engine inspections affecting its fleet. The affected Leap engines operated in dusty regions such as the Middle East have been particularly susceptible to durability issues.
Air Abu Dhabi launched flights to Belgrade in May 2021 and to Sarajevo in October of the same year. Both services have been operated by the 239-seat Airbus A321neo aircraft, Ex Yu Aviation news writes.
