Low-fare airline Wizz Air has navigated a return to profit for FY24, as it reported a 30.2% increase in total revenue and a net profit of €365.9 million despite rising operational expenses, ongoing geopolitical tensions and GTF Engine issues.
Its operating profit was €437.9 million compared to an operating loss of €466.8 million in FY23. The airline also carried a record number of passengers for 2024, up by 20% to a total of 62,015,792.
“Sustained healthy demand for air travel across our markets was a defining feature of FY24, signalling that the surge witnessed post-pandemic has evolved into a longer-term trend in consumer behaviour. Wizz Air has been strongly positioned for this trend as reflected in our performance for the year,” said József Váradi, Wizz Air’s Chief Executive Officer.
Photo: Wizz Air
Network and fleet developments
During FY24, Wizz Air took delivery of 39 new A320neo aircraft, and 12 A320ceo aircraft were redelivered, ending the fiscal year with 208 aircraft. It also extended leases for 11 additional aircraft from the existing fleet. Overall, the share of ‘neo’ aircraft in the fleet has risen to 61%, and the airline now has a backlog of 326 aircraft; 13 A320neo, 266 A321neo and 47 A321XLR aircraft.
In FY25, Wizz Air expects 27 new A321neo deliveries, and its first A321XLR delivery – due to be certified and launched later in 2024 – and three A320ceo on dry lease.
The airline’s network development remains strong. Despite industry challenges, at year-end, it operated 924 routes to 200 destinations in more than 50 countries across all four airlines. In February 2024, it launched six new routes from Budapest Airport. It also completed its Luton Airport-based A321 fleet replacement one year earlier than planned.
The ongoing conflict in Israel impacted Wizz Air’s full-year revenue by €80 million, as it cancelled 6% of its Q3 capacity in October. It has since decided to restart operations to Tel Aviv and has seen a steady growth in demand, but will “continue to monitor developments in the region closely”, the airline said.
GTF Engine update
Wizz Air is expecting 50 aircraft to be grounded by the first half of the FY25 fiscal year. 47 aircraft were currently grounded as of 17 May 2024. To combat this, the airline has said that spare engine deliveries have been advanced, and it expects a further 8-10 new spare engine deliveries, most of which are to be delivered by the end of June 2024.
“We are confident that, in the current year, we will be able to operate capacity comparable to last year. We expect to achieve this through a combination of new aircraft deliveries, existing fleet lease extensions, securing additional aircraft capacity from the market and delivering higher utilisation,” the Budapest-based airline said.
