Wizz Air leaves Abu Dhabi, blaming costs, regional tension

Wizz Air will suspend its Abu Dhabi operations in September after running the budget carrier as a joint venture with ADQ for the past five years.

The Hungarian airline blamed persistent engine issues that grounded its planes, along with geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and regulatory challenges, Bloomberg reports.

Wizz Air Abu Dhabi teamed up with sovereign wealth fund ADQ in 2019 to focus on low-cost flights from its hub in the UAE capital to cities in the Middle East, Africa and India. Five weeks ago, it suffered its worst-ever stock decline amid the airline’s rising costs.

“The more we operate in Abu Dhabi, the more engines we have to ground” because of the hot and harsh environment, Wizz CEO Jozsef Varadi said in an interview with Bloomberg.

With its departure from the UAE, Wizz will focus on its core market in central and eastern Europe, where Varadi said the airline has under-invested because of its concentration on Abu Dhabi and the engine issues. Airline staff in Abu Dhabi will be offered jobs in Europe.