Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, Hungarian ultra-low-cost carrier Wizz Air has stood out for its growth strategy. Despite the challenges of the global health crisis, the airline has consistently adapted and expanded when it comes to its network. Wizz Air also has big plans afoot in terms of its fleet, but which aircraft does it fly at present?
Older A320 family aircraft
According to data from ch-aviation.com, Wizz Air’s fleet currently consists of 133 aircraft. All of these are twin-engine designs from multinational European planemaker Airbus, with the A320ceo series being the dominant force. Wizz Air operates two designs from this family.
The most numerous of these is the standard A320-200. The Hungarian ultra-low-cost carrier has 57 examples of this design at its disposal, of which 55 are active. They are 9.1 years old on average, and have 180 economy seats. Historically, Wizz Air has flown a further 22 A320s.
For higher-demand routes, Wizz Air’s present fleet also features 34 examples of the stretched-fuselage A321-200. 33 of these are active, and they are almost twice as young as their A320 counterparts, with an average age of 4.6 years old. They have 230 seats.
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The A320neo series
The older A320ceo (‘Current Engine Option’) family accounts for nearly 70% of Wizz Air’s current fleet. However, the next-generation A320neo (‘New engine Option’) series is playing an increasing role at the carrier. For instance, the airline already has six A320neo aircraft in its fleet, with an average age of just 1.5 years old. A further 34 examples remain on order.
In terms of Airbus’s next-generation models, Wizz Air has placed a greater emphasis on the longer A321neo variant. There are presently 35 of these in its fleet, aged just 1.1 years old on average. The Hungarian low-cost carrier also has outstanding orders for a whopping 295 A321neos across all variants, including 47 long-range A321XLR aircraft.
Wizz Air’s comprehensive order book for the A320neo series will help it achieve several key fleet goals. As Simple Flying reported this month, the airline has ambitions to get its average fleet age down to three years by 2025. New aircraft will help it achieve this, as well as its aim of having 170 jets in its fleet this summer. They will also play a key sustainability role.
A single widebody freighter
In an interesting departure from its passenger-focused operations, Wizz Air’s fleet also includes a single Airbus A330-200F. Data from ch-aviation shows that it received this 7.23-year-old freighter from Qatar Airways in October 2020. It came as part of a purchase by the Hungarian government, who wanted Wizz to fly Foreign Ministry cargo missions with it.
RadarBox.com shows that the aircraft, which bears the registration HA-LHU, last flew on January 12th, making two circular flights from Budapest. Earlier in the month, it made trips to the likes of Milan, Italy and Astana, Kazakhstan. Meanwhile, its December usage saw it fly to a greater range of destinations that included Tehran, Iran and Yerevan, Armenia.
What do you make of Wizz Air’s current fleet? Have you ever flown with the Hungarian ultra-low-cost carrier? Let us know your thoughts and experiences in the comments.
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