Ryanair Holdings has said that it would appeal against an injunction issued by a Hungarian court which temporarily bans it from using its Buzz (Poland) (RR, Warsaw Modlin) brand in the country pending the resolution of a lawsuit by Wizz Air (W6, Budapest).
While the original ruling has not been reported and is not public, ch-aviation understands from sources in the Hungarian aviation industry that Wizz Air has sought to block its rival low-cost carrier from using the Buzz brand due to the alleged similarity to Wizz Air's own name.
"We look forward to overturning this silly injunction on appeal, and we will continue to focus on Buzz's expansion in Hungary, as the lowest fare, industry-leading service winner across Central and Eastern Europe, even while Wizz are cutting aircraft and capacity in Budapest. Those that can, compete, and those that can’t - like Wizz - run to Court seeking injunctions to protect them," Ryanair's Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said in a press release.
Buzz, known until recently as Ryanair Sun (Warsaw Modlin), is Ryanair's Polish subsidiary. The Irish LCC is using it to operate an increasing number of bases in Central and Eastern Europe, including at Budapest. The airline operates scheduled flights exclusively as a wet-lease operator under the code of Ryanair (FR, Dublin International). However, it also operates charter flights on behalf of tour operators from Poland under its own code.
Ryanair does not use the Buzz brand to market its scheduled flights in Hungary or elsewhere.
Wizz Air did not respond to ch-aviation's request for comment.
