Wizz Air has bought a host of landing slots at Gatwick in an aggressive expansion at Britain’s second-biggest airport.
The Budapest-based budget airline has acquired 15 take-off and landing slots pairs at the airport from Norwegian Air Shuttle, which abandoned its long-haul flights and retreated to Europe when the pandemic struck.
The deal means Wizz will base another four Airbus A321neo aircraft at Gatwick, taking the total to five from spring next year.
The Hungarian carrier will use the slots to launch a string of new short-haul routes as part of its growth plans.
Jozsef Varadi, chief executive of Wizz, said the deal was further evidence of the airline’s commitment to Gatwick and the UK.
“Acquiring airport slots at Gatwick airport will enable us to enhance our presence and competitive position in the London market,” he said.
Financial terms were not disclosed, but analysts estimate the slots to be worth between £25m and £34m.
It marks the latest bullish move by Wizz as it looks to expand its operations and win market share from rivals such as Ryanair and easyJet as travel rebounds after the pandemic.
Last month the company ordered more than 100 new planes from Airbus as part of a plan to triple its fleet by 2030.
Wizz has also been unafraid to dial up the pressure on its rivals, making a bold but unsuccessful attempt to acquire rival easyJet in September.
Mr Varadi has repeatedly called for the enforcement of rules forcing airlines to surrender slots unless they use 80pc of them following a pandemic relaxation.
British Airways and Virgin Atlantic have both retained slots at Gatwick while mothballing many of their flights in a move Wizz regards as an obstacle to its expansion at the airport.
Earlier this month BA said it would resume short-haul flights from the airport in a new budget offshoot after abandoning almost all operations when coronavirus struck.
Mr Varadi was handed a controversial bonus plan earlier this year that could bag £100m if he can double the London-listed carrier’s share price over the next five years.
Shares in Wizz rose almost 3pc to £43.50 and has a market value of £1bn more than easyJet.
