Widerøe delivers solid figures in July despite major challenges in summer traffic.

Widerøe continues its growth and its offer is now 31 per cent higher than in 2019. Widerøe is still by far the largest domestic airline in Norway in the number of departures, with 106 per cent of the 2019 production.

This year’s summer routes, both Norwegian domestic and international routes, have performed well with a load factor of 87 per cent. The holiday and leisure segment is a focus area for Widerøe and the aim is to increase production for parts of the year with more holiday travellers.

Affected by SAS strike

Widerøe’s customers have also been largely affected by the SAS strike. During the strike, close to 3,000 customers with SAS/Widerøe combination trips were affected daily by the strike. A total of 51,000 passengers needed assistance throughout the conflict. The strike had an economically negative effect on Widerøe’s tender routes, which depend on the supply of traffic from SAS and the main route network. This was compensated through increased demand on Widerøe’s commercial routes on routes where flights are flown directly and indirectly in competition with SAS. In total, the strike had a positive income effect for July of between 15 and 20 MNOK.

“July delivers solidly and we are very pleased to be able to present good figures for another month in 2022. This despite strikes and major operational disruptions in aviation in the rest of Europe,” says Widerøe CEO Stein Nilsen.

Letter of intent with Norwegian

Norwegian and Widerøe entered into an intended agreement in July, which means that the two Norwegian airlines will cooperate much more closely in a number of areas in the future. This includes, among other things, ticket cooperation on the entire route network and the fact that passengers can have the opportunity to travel seamlessly with both companies through so-called “interlining”.

“We are very pleased that our summer routes have hit the market. It adds flavour. The best news for our customers is still the letter of intent regarding ticket cooperation with Norwegian, which we signed in July. The agreement will ensure seamless travel in combination with Norwegian and Widerøe, and is an offer we know our customers have been asking for for a long time,” concludes Nilsen.

Luggage chaos

Major challenges with baggage handling at a number of large European airports are spreading to Norwegian destinations. Widerøe Airline has had a tripling of baggage going astray in July compared to June. Widerøe has increased staffing throughout the summer to remedy the situation. It still takes longer than normal for passengers to be reunited with their delayed luggage

Wednesday 3 August 2022