Millennials Are Happy to Get on Planes Again
As travel restrictions are lifted, Wizz Air is much better positioned than some of its bigger rivals. Its young customer base might help.
Young flyers.
Photographer: Akos Stiller/Bloomberg
Europe’s airlines aren’t all made equal. German flag carrier Deutsche Lufthansa AG will receive a 9 billion-euro ($10 billion) bailout and it was obliged to offer only limited concessions to Brussels in return. Meanwhile, low-cost Hungarian rival Wizz Air Holdings Plc has benefited from only limited state support. Goliath gets the goodies, and David the gruel.
But anyone paying attention to these two companies’ earnings presentations this week will have concluded that Wizz is much better placed to profit as Covid-19 travel restrictions are lifted. It sounded pretty upbeat about demand and wants to expand its network, as the lumbering debt-laden Lufthansa prepares to shrink. Wizz is one of the few airlines whose shares have risen over the past year.