Wizz Air Grows Yerevan Footprint As Armenia Unveils Connectivity Plan

Wizz Air, the largest international airline in Armenia’s market, will further expand its presence in the country from October with the opening of a new base in Yerevan.

The airline plans to station two Airbus A321neo aircraft at Zvartnots international Airport, marking the 34th base in its network. Wizz Air Hungary's Roland Tischner says the move will enable the ULCC to “almost double” the number of flights from the Armenian capital.

Once the base opens, seven new routes will be launched to: Bari and Naples in Italy; Bucharest, Romania; Hamburg and Memmingen in Germany; Nice, France; and Paphos, Cyprus, alongside the resumption of flights to Prague after a two-year hiatus.

According to OAG Schedules Analyser data, Flyone Armenia currently operates flights to Nice and Paphos during the summer 2025 season, while the other six routes announced by Wizz Air are currently unserved.

Wizz Air entered the Armenian market in June 2020, initially launching flights to Yerevan from Vienna and Vilnius, Lithuania. Since then, the airline says it has carried more than 2.2 million passengers on routes to and from the country.

During the summer 2025 season, Wizz Air operates eight routes to Yerevan from Budapest; Dortmund, Germany; Larnaca, Cyprus; Milan Malpensa, Rome Fiumicino and Venice Marco Polo, Italy; Sofia, Bulgaria; and Vienna. Its affiliate, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi, also serves Yerevan from the United Arab Emirates capital.

Combined, Wizz Air and Wizz Air Abu Dhabi are scheduled to offer approximately 370,000 departing seats from Yerevan this summer—an increase of 22.3% compared to summer 2024. The growth places the group as the second-largest airline in Armenia with a 16.1% market share, behind Flyone Armenia, which holds 20.6%.

Total outbound capacity from Armenia is projected to reach approximately 2.29 million seats during the summer 2025 season, representing a year-on-year increase of nearly 17%. The figure signals a return to 2023 levels—a record year for the country’s aviation sector—prior to the suspension of operations by FlyArna, an LCC jointly launched by Air Arabia and the Armenia National Interests Fund.

Wizz Air’s planned expansion comes two weeks after the Armenian government approved a new route development program aimed at boosting inbound passenger traffic. The initiative will offer subsidies to airlines launching routes from Yerevan and Gyumri to unserved destinations.

According to a government statement, the program is expected to increase passenger volumes by an estimated 5% to 6% annually. Officials say the policy will help stimulate tourism, expand Armenia’s air connectivity and encourage more international airlines to base aircraft in the country.

However, the plan has drawn criticism from Armenian carriers. In a joint statement, the CEOs of FlyOne Armenia and Shirak Avia expressed “deep concern,” warning that the program could lead to “a number of dangerous side consequences” for local airlines. They argued that the subsidies could “further deepen the conditions of unequal competition with foreign carriers.”

The first of Wizz Air’s new routes from Yerevan will launch on Oct. 1, connecting the Armenian capital with Prague and Hamburg. Flights to Paphos and Nice will begin on Oct. 2, followed by Naples on Oct. 16. Service to Bari and Bucharest is set to start on Oct. 26, with Memmingen joining the network on Oct. 28. Additionally, frequencies on the existing Dortmund route will increase to four flights per week.