The future’s pink as Doncaster Sheffield Airport celebrates 4 millionth Wizz passenger

It was a pleasant surprise for mum, Agnieszka Machnik and children Kajetan and Amelia, as they set off on their journey to Poznan when they learned Mrs Machnik is the 4 millionth passenger to fly with Wizz from Doncaster Sheffield Airport (DSA).

Wizz Air is DSA’s largest airline and Europe’s leading ultra-low-cost airline, serving nearly a third of the 55 flight destinations that currently take off from Doncaster Sheffield Airport.

Wizz Air has operated from Doncaster Sheffield Airport (DSA) for over a decade with flights starting in 2006.

Since then a number of popular European cities and favourite holiday places continue to be added to this growing choice of destinations, now 14 with Krakow, Chisinau and Budapest the most recent.  Wizz Air today flies over 600 routes from 25 bases across its network

Chris Harcombe, Aviation Director at Doncaster Sheffield Airport, said:  Wizz Air is a valued partner and an integral part of the growth plans at Doncaster Sheffield Airport.  Their commitment to operating with the smallest environmental footprint per passenger, award-winning service and passion for providing great passenger choice at value-for-money prices are a great match for our Easy, Friendly, Relaxed principles, here at DSA.  We look forward to creating many more record-breaking moments and celebrating important milestones in the future.”

Owain Jones, Wizz Air UK Managing Director said: “It’s no surprise that four million customers have chosen Wizz Air’s ultra-low fare flights from Doncaster Sheffield Airport. WIZZ currently flies from Doncaster Sheffield to 14 destinations across Europe, bringing in many visitors to the Yorkshire region.  Whether it’s a beach holiday or city break that you’re looking for, get there flying on one of our state-of-the-art, ultra-efficient aircraft that make us one of Europe’s greenest airlines.  The Wizz Air team looks forward to welcoming customers old and new on-board a Wizz Air flight from Doncaster Sheffield very soon.”

WIZZ Air top ten interesting facts you may not have known about the airline.

1. The idea for WIZZ Air was born when six successful like-minded airline experts joined forces with CEO Józef Váradi and registered WIZZ Air as a company.
2. Its first flight took off on the 19^th May 2004 from Katowice.  Today WIZZ Air offers over 600 routes from 25 bases including Vienna in Austria, Budapest and Debrecen in Hungary, adding Katowice and Warsaw to its existing bases of Poznan, Gdansk and Wroclaw in Poland.
3. Following a decade of solid growth to become Central and Eastern Europe’s largest low-cost airline on 25^th February 2015 it successfully completed an initial public offering and was admitted to the London Stock Exchange (LSE) under the ticker WIZZ.
4. In March this year, WIZZ Air was awarded the best low-cost airline of the year in Central Easter Europe accolade and received recognition for the best cabin crew service in the same region.
5. WIZZ Air recorded exceptional growth figures for FY19 stating:
   • 34.5 million passengers
   • 112 new aircraft
   • Operating from 146 airports
   •  4,500 employees
   • 25 bases across Europe
   • Flying to 44 countries
   • Adding 125 new routes
6. WIZZ opened a brand-new state-of-the-art training centre in Budapest, Hungary in 2018, giving it the capacity to train a further 800 cabin crew and 300 new pilots per annum.
7. Though its livery may be a vibrant bright pink, WIZZ is the greenest airline in Europe.  The largest low-cost carrier in Central and Eastern Europe operates at the lowest CO2 emission per passenger amongst all other competitor airlines.  With 56.5g CO2 per passenger/km in May 2019, it is the airline with the smallest environmental footprint per passenger.
8. The airline takes a pro-active approach to giving passengers transparent information for them to make responsible choices in their travel arrangements.  The airline’s commitment to energy efficiency continues as it seeks to decrease its environmental footprint by 1/3 for every passenger over the next decade by investing heavily in a new fleet of over 250 Airbus A321NEQ aircraft.  These will join the existing modern fleet of Airbus A320, A321CEO and A321NEQ aircraft with an average age of 4 – 7 years, making it one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the industry.
9.  WIZZ is the fastest growing airline in Europe and celebrated the 15^th anniversary of its first flight in May 2019 by marking the incredible milestone of its 200 million carried passengers!
10. It’s the lowest-cost airline operator across the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region and was recognised as Value Airline of the Year in 2016 by leading industry magazine Air Transport World.