Wizz Air Abu Dhabi to postpone Moscow flights until further notice

The budget airline says supply chain problems are to blame for the delay

Passengers with reservations on these flights will be given refund options in the original method of payment or credit. Photo: Wizz Air Abu Dhabi

Wizz Air Abu Dhabi, a joint venture between UAE holding company ADQ and Hungary-based Wizz Air, said it would postpone flights to Moscow until further notice after operations to Russia were suspended earlier this year.

“Wizz Air regrets to inform its customers that the airline has had to defer the start of operations from Abu Dhabi to Moscow due to industry supply chain limitations,” the budget airline said in a statement on Friday.

The airline said earlier this month that it would operate a daily flight to Moscow from October 3, with fares starting at Dh359 ($97.7).

Passengers with reservations on these flights will be contacted by email and presented options to obtain refunds in the original method of payment or 120 per cent of the ticket fare in credit to be used for Wizz flights and services, the airline said.

The airline had said in October that it would launch flights to Moscow, its first Russian destination, in December.

It suspended flights to Moscow on February 27 after Russian’s military offensive against Ukraine.

The majority of Wizz Air Abu Dhabi (51 per cent) is held by Abu Dhabi’s state-owned holding company ADQ, while Hungary's discount airline Wizz Air owns the remaining 49 per cent.

The Hungarian airline said in March that it had suspended all its flights to and from Russia in light of the conflict in Ukraine.

EU restrictions have banned flights to Russia by companies based in the bloc, as part of sanctions in response to Moscow's military intervention in Ukraine.

Airlines in the UAE have continued their Russian flights. Dubai-based Emirates, the world’s largest long-haul airline, said in March that it would continue its operations there. The airline serves Moscow twice daily and St Petersburg once a day, connecting the cities with its large global network through a stopover in Dubai.

Launched in 2019, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi currently covers a network of 34 destinations within a five-hour flight time radius of the UAE capital, with a fleet of Airbus A321 Neo jets.

Wizz Air is listed on the London Stock Exchange.