Wizz Air today announced the launch of the first Airbus A321XLR operations in the UK with flights commencing from Gatwick to Jeddah next year.
From 31 March 2025, the low-cost carrier will operate daily flights by night, starting at £134.99 from London Gatwick.
The A321XLR – short for Extra Long Range – will allow Wizz Air to fly directly from London to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia and other routes for flights up to eight hours.
The airline’s current fleet of A321neos can only fly up to six hours today – but with an additional fuel tank, the XLR can fly for another two hours.
Wizz Air CEO, József Váradi, said: “The Airbus A321XLR is the most cost-efficient aircraft in its class.
“Its enhanced range capability allows Wizz Air to connect the farthest destinations in its network, while also providing opportunities for further expansion, connecting more cultures, economies and continents.
“We are excited to offer unbeatable fares to our customers on the new route from London Gatwick to Jeddah.”
He told journalists in London this morning that the launch of A321XLR operations gave Wizz Air the “X factor” to compete with legacy carriers currently flying similar routes to the region by offering passengers a low-cost, long-haul option.
“Based on our operating model, the weight of our aircraft and assumed load factor, we expect this aircraft to operate for up to eight hours,” Váradi said.
“Today we are limited to six hours – but with this aircraft we can add another two.
“We believe this aircraft will extend the ultra-low-cost airline proposition from short or medium-haul to long-haul.”
He added that the configuration of the A321XLR will not change from the current design of the airline’s A321neo fleet with regard to seat numbers.
Challenged on how the new route will test passengers’ tolerance of low-cost carriers, Váradi said: “We think this is a hell of a deal [for customers].”
Stewart Wingate, CEO of Gatwick Airport, welcomed today’s news, telling the airline he is “delighted and proud of Wizz Air”.
He said: “We’re really proud to be partners with you and to see a successful growth story with Wizz Air at Gatwick over the years. Obviously today’s news is very, very exciting for us at the airport.
“This is your first XLR deployment, but it’s also our first – so we’re delighted that Wizz Air has chosen to do that in the UK, and specifically to do it from Gatwick.”
“Wizz Air are playing a really major part in our success. We look forward to the new opportunities with the XLR and we wish Wizz Air every success in this new venture, and certainly we’ll be working as hard as we can to make sure it’s a really big success in 2025.”
The new route is expected to create more than 60 direct jobs and an additional 200 local jobs.
Wizz Air today operates more than 800 routes on 223 aircraft – from 33 bases in 16 countries. It carried more than 62 million passengers in the last 12 months.
