Wizz Air: Scaling ULCC Economics Across Long-Haul Frontier Markets

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I believe Norwegian Airlines, if you're familiar with them, attempted to be a transcontinental low-cost carrier, but the idea flopped. I think there was a problem with the seasonality of the flights and the lack of a first-class offering, which is crucial for the economics of those flights. Not having business-class travelers hurt them significantly. This might be unique to Europe to the US routes, but why would transcontinental low-cost carriers succeed now when they haven't in the past? Even the smart ones like Ryanair haven't attempted this.

The difference with Wizz Air and similar carriers, like Iberia and United, is the use of the A321 XLR, a narrow-body aircraft. This keeps the fleet intact without mixing narrow-body and wide-body operations. Wide-body operations are entirely different from a crew perspective, tripling or quadrupling crew costs, for example. Wizz Air is introducing this model while maintaining the same principles unless infeasible. For example, this aircraft type will be a 239-seater, and there will be no oven onboard due to fuel consumption concerns. Adhering to these principles is another lever for success. Additionally, market selection is crucial. Instead of targeting the North Atlantic stream, operating in VFR markets makes more sense for this aircraft type. It unlocks markets, offers fares previously unreachable for customers, and introduces a new business model for success.

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