At the end of last week Hungarian low-cost carrier Wizz Air resumed flights to Israel for the first time in three months.
The airline took a major step towards Israel by bringing forward its renewal of Israel operations after aircraft had already been allocated to other destinations. Sources say that Wizz Air made major changes to its flight schedules in order to divert planes back to Israel.
The return to operations at Ben Gurion Airport will be gradual. Last weekend, the airline began five weekly flights to each of Budapest and Larnaca. On August 22, the airline’s route to London Luton will be renewed, with five flights a week. On September 1, additional routes will be added to Vienna, Sofia, Rome and Milan – each with three to four flights a week. The route to Bucharest will also be added with five flights a week and the route to Iasi with two flights a week. Starting September 15, flights to Athens, Crete, Rhodes, Warsaw, Vilnius, Lorraine and Krakow will also resume. Flights to Cluj and Naples will be renewed on October 27 and 28, respectively.
How will Wizz Air’s return influence fares?
The resumption of Wizz Air’s services to Israel should help cut fares by increasing the supply of flight tickets when demand is at its peak. The low-cost airline’s fares already reflect the high prices typical of periods of high demand but it has been marketing the first tickets, which are sold at the lowest price according to the pricing algorithm used in the aviation industry Indications are that Wizz Air’s impact on lower fares is particularly noticeable on routes to destinations where supply is limited and there is little competition.
For example, according to data from Ophir Tours, Wizz Air is offering last-minute round-trip tickets to Budapest in August for $248, compared with $327-536 being asked by Israeli airlines. For flights to London during the High Holidays, Wizz Air’s round trip fares are $558, compared with $977- $2,624 for its Israeli competitors. The gap is also significant for tickets to Vienna: $558 versus $586-1,390. This gap is due, among other things, to the fact that El Al has no more tickets left in economy class on most routes during peak demand periods, and the initial prices the company offers are in the premium and business classes, while the other airlines are offering the final tickets in economy classes.
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On the other hand, on shorter routes, where competition is more significant, the picture changes. On flights to Larnaca at the end of August, for example, Wizz Air’s fares are lower ($140 versus $198-164), but during the High Holidays fares are similar to Arkia ($400 versus $308-442). On flights to Sofia, fares are identical ($390 on Wizzair and Arkia).
Wizz Air’s return comes as the airline seeks to set up a regional hub in Israel. Israel’s Minister of Transport Miri Regev supports the idea while the Civil Aviation Authority opposes such a hub at Ben Gurion Airport, due to the potential harm to Israeli airlines. Regev will be eager to please the voting public, because such a hub would reduce fares to and from Israel, but she will come under huge pressure from the Israeli airlines and their workers’ committees.
The government is also considering allowing Wizz Air to fly between Ben Gurion airport and Eilat, including compensation if the airline cannot fill flights.
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on August 11, 2025.
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