The Airbus A321XLR could be a game changer for budget airlines. See how Wizz Air's cheap 7-hour flight would compare with British Airways.
Pete Syme
- Wizz Air announced its first route for the Airbus A321XLR from London to Jeddah.
- The new route costs £134.99, making it one of the most cost-efficient flights available.
European ultra-low-cost carrier Wizz Air announced Tuesday its first route for the Airbus A321XLR.
The A321XLR could be a game changer for budget airlines because it can fly up to two hours further. That's key for the likes of Wizz, given that its pilots are already trained on the Airbus A320 family of jets.
By opening longer routes with the XLR, budget airlines could compete with legacy carriers operating widebody jets. While that could emphasize the austere experience of budget carriers, the price gap will likely be more important for most people.
Starting at £134.99 ($176.57) from London to Jeddah, Wizz's new route could cost passengers as little as 7 cents per mile — one of the most cost-efficient flights available.
It's about one-third of the price of British Airways, operating the same route on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
I've flown on both a Wizz A321neo and a BA 787. Even on a much longer flight, the Dreamliner was way more enjoyable, with comfier seats, in-flight entertainment, and complimentary food and drink.
Wizz Air is set to launch its first Airbus A321XLR route next March.
The XLR has an increased range and could be especially helpful for Wizz since its pilots are already trained on the type.
Budget airlines typically use just one type of aircraft because this reduces the costs of pilot training and maintenance. For example, Southwest Airlines only flies Boeing 737 jets, while Spirit Airlines only flies narrowbody Airbus planes.
It wouldn't make financial sense for Wizz to operate a widebody jet like legacy airlines, so the XLR allows it to open new routes.
Despite the longer journey, Wizz says the seats on the XLR will be the same as the A321neo.
That means no reclining seats on the 239-capacity jet.
"15, 20 years ago, I thought three hours would test passenger tolerance, and then we pushed it to six hours, and we are still fine," Váradi said.
He said most passengers "sacrifice some level of comfort" on widebody aircraft too, given that there are no lie-flat beds in economy class.
"You kind of suffer the pain, if you wish, for the economic benefits that you are deriving from the transaction," Váradi added.
Back in April, I flew on a Wizz A321neo for two-and-a-half hours.
My flight from Madrid to Rome was fine and there was little to complain about. However, I was already getting bored and I think a seven-hour flight would really test my limits.
From my experiences of Europe's three big budget airlines, I ranked it below easyJet but better than Ryanair.
The modern seats were comfier than other budget airlines but offered less space.
The seat pitch — the distance between the same spot on one seat and the one in front — is 28 inches on Wizz, compared to 30 inches on Ryanair.
I definitely wouldn't want to be stuck in the back row where there are no windows.
On the bright side, it seems this row is only used during fully booked flights, as it was empty during my realtively-busy journey.
There wasn't much in the way of in-flight entertainment.
If you do forget to bring a book or your phone runs out of battery, there is a magazine that also includes the menu.
You have to pay for drinks or meals, which still didn't look like the tastiest.
The cheapest food offerings include soup for 3.50 euros ($3.86) or a meal deal with a baguette for 7.50 euros ($8.28).
Wizz also had a summer deal on beer, where passengers could buy the fourth one for free at a cost of 18.60 euros ($20.53).
Just the fact that it's a smaller, single-aisle plane can make you feel more cramped as time goes by.
On the London-to-Jeddah route, Wizz would compete with British Airways' Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
For flights next March, when Wizz launches its route, flying British Airways one-way from London to Jeddah starts at £383 ($500).
That's about three times as much as the Wizz flight, but it would almost certainly be a more comfortable journey.
Last November I flew economy on a BA Dreamliner to Dubai for 7 hours — a similar flight time as that to Jeddah.
It might've been nearly three times as long as the Wizz flight I took in April, but I found it more enjoyable given the comforts.
In economy, the BA flight came with a free meal ...
I opted for the pasta, which came with a bread roll, fruit, and a chocolate dessert.
... As well as complimentary drinks and in-flight entertainment.
I found Greta Gerwig's "Little Women" helped while away the time better than reading a novel on board my Wizz flight.
But for most people, I imagine the price will make all the difference.
Many passengers might never have considered destinations like Jeddah before — but now longer routes are available on budget airlines thanks to the A321XLR.
The spartan nature of an ultra-low-cost carrier would be made more apparent by the competition with a legacy airline's widebody jets, but the price gap could be a game changer.
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