Wizz Air (W6, Budapest) has announced further expansion in Russia, by launching four new routes from St. Petersburg to Bucharest Henri Coanda (3x weekly), Sofia (3x weekly), Vilnius (2x weekly) and Bratislava (4x weekly), which will commence in June and July 2020. No other airlines currently operate these city pairs.

“Today’s announcement underlines Wizz Air’s commitment to create more and more low-fare travel opportunities for Russian travellers," József Váradi, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Wizz Air, said at a press conference in the Russian city. "The four new European destinations from Saint Petersburg to Bucharest, Vilnius, Sofia and Bratislava expand our network and provide an ever-growing choice of affordable travel to European destinations on one of the youngest and greenest fleets."

Váradi also extolled the benefits of the improved traffic rights and the strategic relevance of Russia for the LCC's plans. "Together with the recent simplified e-visa process and the establishment of the seventh freedom [traffic rights] above Saint Petersburg it is becoming an even more attractive tourism destination. Wizz Air has a long-term strategic interest in the Russian market and we are looking forward to welcoming ever-more passengers on board our young and reliable fleet.”

“We are grateful for the support from the Government of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation, the Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia, the Government of St. Petersburg and the VTB Group," commented Leonid Sergeev, CEO of Pulkovo Airport operator Northern Capital Gateway. "Today Pulkovo Airport has unprecedented conditions for the development as an international aviation hub. The complex of measures includes the seventh freedom traffic rights regime, flexible tariff management and e-visas for St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region. We are the first in Russia to offer foreign airlines such unique market conditions."

Wizz Air's first flights from St.Petersburg were launched in 2017, and to date, the LCC has carried over 200,000 passengers on its Budapest and London Luton routes from the Russian city. By connecting Russia with Romania, Bulgaria, Lithuania and Bratislava, Wizz Air is now offering a total of ten routes to six countries from Russia.