Wizz Air has postponed the launch of some routes to Abu Dhabi from late October to January following security updates from Europe's aviation regulator.
The low-cost airline said last month that it was resuming flights to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, alongside routes to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia and Amman in Jordan.
The launch of routes to Abu Dhabi – including from Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Cyprus and Hungary – scheduled to begin in late October, has now been pushed to January 10, 2027, due to latest guidelines from the EU Aviation Safety Agency (Easa), Wizz Air said in a statement to The National.
“The continued closure of Iraqi airspace requires longer routings and technical refuelling stops for the A321neo aircraft operating these services. Combined with current fuel prices, this makes the affected routes commercially unviable under present conditions,” the airline said.
The UAE services were part of a wider restoration of 12 routes and 49 weekly flights to the Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Jordan over the winter, providing 470,000 seats across services to nine European cities.
With Jordan's airspace also placed on the “do not operate” list in Easa's latest conflict zone information bulletin, flights to the country have been suspended until October 25, Wizz Air said.
“Affected customers will be informed directly about their options, and we will continue to monitor conditions ahead of the revised launch date,” the airline added.
The carrier suspended its European-operated services to the Middle East in late February due to the regional conflict and widespread airspace disruption.
The airline was set to resume operations after its low-cost subsidiary, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi, ceased operations on September 1, 2025.
Wizz Air Abu Dhabi, which operated for five years from the UAE capital, said in July last year that it would suspend all locally based services from the emirate because of operational challenges and geopolitical instability.
