TIRANA, March 13 /ATA/- The agreement on concession of Rinas airport, the only airport in the country, reached in 2005 has penalized for many years the Albanian citizens due to exclusivity of international flights given to the company.
Despite the airport’s gate expansion or the construction of new terminal, the high airport charges have made the air fares in Albania the highest in the region.
As a result, the Albanian govt. has negotiated for several years in a row with the operator of Rinas airport, TIA, which resulted in an agreement scrapping the exclusivity clause only two years ago.
The removal of exclusivity paved the way for construction of new Vlora airport and setting to operation the Kukes airport built in 2009.
In addition, the govt. is planning to build a tourist airport in Saranda.
The latest developments are expected to reduce the prices of air tickets for the citizens wishing to travel to and from Albania as well as to extend the range of travel destinations.
This move of Albanian govt. was enticing to many low -cost companies, which took interest in Albanian market. Wizz Air, is one of low cost companies that operates for one year now in the Albanian market the Tirana-Budapest line and is slated to operate the Tirana-London line.
Wizz Air is today one of Europe’s fastest- growing lines and the lowest-cost carrier in Central and Eastern Europe.
In the next 17 weeks, a total of 21 aircrafts will be assigned to its European bases, supporting 700 additional weekly flights and launching 70 new services, bringing Wizz Air’s full network to more than 600 routes, linking 145 destinations in 43 countries.
Four new destinations – Athens, Tallinn, Kharkiv, Vienna – will be inaugurated in mid-July, along with the opening of a new Western European base in the Austrian capital.
The expansion of WIZZ in 2018 represents an investment of more than $ 2 billion on 11 bases, in the UK, Austria, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary, Romania and Georgia.
Today, WIZZ celebrates this great expansion along with its passengers, offering a one-day ticket discount of 20% for all flights scheduled until May 31, for bookings made today, March 13, until midnight.
Wizz Air begins its 2018 expansion in Budapest this week with the arrival of a new Airbus A320 airplane, which will be the 11th type based in Budapest, coinciding with the launch of a new exciting route towards Stavanger in Norway.
Owain Jones, the chief corporate office at Wizz Air, said the company remains committed to its mission of making air travel affordable for more people than ever before, offering the lowest prices thanks to its ULCC business model.
“More and more customers choose to fly with Wizz Air every year, enjoying the connection of Wizz Air wide network with more than 600 routes. The 70 new routes to be launched in the next 17 weeks will provide more travel opportunities for our customers, which on the other hand will help businesses and economies of the communities we serve, increase their links,” he said.
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