Low cost carrier Wizz Air has held talks with Tuzla Airport’s management in Budapest over the potential reopening of its base in the city, according to the “Klix” portal.
The budget airline, which had two aircraft stationed in Tuzla announced the closure of its base in September 2023.
At the time, the carrier said, “The challenging macroeconomic environment, along with complicated weather conditions in the region, such as frequent fogs which heavily affect operational performance, have, unfortunately, made it impossible to operate a large network from Tuzla Airport and base our aircraft there”.
The decision caught Tuzla Airport by surprise and has led to a significant decline in passenger numbers, with the low cost carrier being the airport’s sole scheduled airline operator.
Wizz Air discontinued thirteen of its sixteen routes out of Tuzla following the base closure, keeping only services to Basel, Dortmund and Memmingen. In August 2023, the airline maintained a total of 416 Tuzla flights during the month (combined total for both inbound and outbound services), offering 74.880 seats, while this August, the carrier has just seventy Tuzla flights scheduled offering 12.912 seats on the market.
Apart from the three routes the airline has kept in operation, Wizz Air had the most frequencies from Tuzla to Hahn, Stockholm Skavsta, and Berlin, which could be among the destinations restored if the airline opts to reopen its base. During the first quarter of 2024, Tuzla Airport handled 51.070 passengers, representing a decrease of 67.1% on the same period last year. These figures also include travellers who flew on Lumiwings flights out of Tuzla which have since been discontinued.
Tuzla Airport has scrambled to find an alternative to Wizz Air but has so far has no success. After local authorities issued a public call for an airline to open a base in the city in return for subsidies, Greece’s Lumiwing won the contract, launching several routes. The venture lasted just over two months and ended in a financial dispute between the airline and airport, resulting in Lumiwings discontinuing all its operations out of Tuzla. Although a new public call was issued, there has been no interest from carriers. Tuzla Airport is reported to be in talks with another airline to launch one route to the city later this summer, Ex Yu Aviation news reports.
