On Thursday, October 1, 2026, the Turkish carrier Pegasus Airlines announced the successful completion of its acquisition of the Smartwings Group, which encompasses Smartwings and its foreign airline subsidiaries. This milestone came nearly ten months after Pegasus Airlines publicly announced its intention to purchase Smartwings—an announcement made on December 8, 2025, at a time when Poland’s LOT had been widely expected to acquire the company right up to the last moment.
Both carriers subsequently had to overcome a number of obstacles. Describing the event simply as "Pegasus buying Smartwings" is a journalistic shorthand; in December, Pegasus Airlines did not actually purchase Smartwings but rather signed a takeover agreement. The deal was subject to approval by antitrust authorities "and other third parties, as well as the fulfillment of additional conditions precedent over the following 12 months." Pegasus Airlines anticipated the merger would take place in 2026. The agreed price...
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- 2026-09-24 12:08
- Changes in routes
This is a rather curious case. In the spring, Wizz Air announced plans to relaunch its scheduled route from Prague to Palermo, Sicily. However, this did not go unnoticed by Ryanair, which holds a numerical advantage over its Hungarian rival at Prague Airport (Ruzyně) across all measurable metrics: it operates direct flights to more destinations, carries more passengers, and even bases three of its Boeing 737 aircraft there.
Ryanair was the first to launch direct flights to Palermo, starting on Wednesday, September 2. It offers four flights a week—on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
Wizz Air followed suit four days later. Starting Saturday, September 6, it also offers four flights weekly, though primarily on days when it does not face direct competition from Ryanair; it flies on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. Unlike the Irish carrier, Wizz Air is already selling tickets for the summer 2027 schedule.
Direct scheduled flights from Prague to Sicily were already i...
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- 2026-09-23 06:08
- Changes in routes
On Tuesday, September 15, the Airbus A320-214 registered OK-IOO (serial number 3762, built in 2009) departed Prague for Tarbes, France. This aircraft had been acquired by Czech Airlines in 2023, marking the carrier's centenary of commercial flight operations; the registration "IOO" symbolically represented those 100 years. Just a year and a half later, the company ceased commercial flight operations.
Smartwings subsequently operated the Airbus for just under two years, flying it in ČSA livery. It spent two winter seasons on a dry-lease to the Canadian carrier Air Transat, operating under the registration C-GEXI.
The plane performed its final commercial flight for Smartwings on Sunday, September 13, operating flight QS 1347 from Marsa Alam to Ostrava. It landed at Mošnov Airport with its final passengers at 11:14 AM. Two days later, following its arrival in Tarbes, France, it was retired from the fleet. The very last Airbus A320 remaining in the fleet is the one registe...
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- 2026-09-22 12:48
- Changes in routes
The German carrier Eurowings is introducing a new direct-flight destination from Prague for the upcoming winter season. This year, the airline is heading north to Finland. The new addition to the 2026/2027 winter schedule is the city of Rovaniemi, marked by some people as the home of Santa Claus.
Eurowings flight EW 4234 will be operated by an Airbus A320. Flights to the Finnish town will run once a week, every Sunday. The service will launch on December 20 and conclude on February 21, 2027.
The carrier has maintained a base at Prague Airport since 2022. The current summer season has been its weakest to date; routes to Barcelona, Geneva, Heraklion, and Valencia have been cancelled. Current operations are limited to flights to Alicante, Athens, Brindisi, Cologne, Düsseldorf, Málaga, Nice, Stockholm, and Tallinn, as well as Ibiza and Mallorca.
In addition to Rovaniemi, the airline plans winter flights to Beirut, Düsseldorf, and Marrakech. The seasonal route to Madeira is not expected...
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- 2026-09-07 06:03
- Changes in routes
Prague will gain a direct flight connection with Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Hungarian low-cost carrier Wizz Air will start flying to the country's capital Sarajevo from December 18th, 2026.
The route will operate twice a week, every Monday and Friday. It will bear the number W6 4697/8. Wizz Air does not have a base in Sarajevo or Prague, and the flight schedule shows that the route will be operated by an Airbus arriving to Prague on a different route, departing for Sarajevo at 8:55 and, after returning from Sarajevo at 12:35 to continue back to where it arrived to Prague in the morning.
The second new destination that Wizz Air will offer with a direct flight from Prague is Suceava, Romania. The city is located approximately 40 kilometers from the border with Ukraine. The Ukrainian city of Chernivtsi is about the same distance away. The route will not only serve to transport passengers to Romania, but also for those heading to Ukraine.
The flight to Suceava will fly three times...
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- 2026-09-01 09:00
- Changes in routes
Starlux Airlines launched a regular service from Taiwan to Prague last month. The first month of service was operated by Airbus A350-900s. Today, September 1, the Airbus A350-1000, the largest of the A350 family, begins regular service on the route. Starlux currently has four of them in its fleet.
The Airbus A350-100, registration B-58554 (serial number 797, year of manufacture 2026), flying on route JX 101, landed at Prague Airport on Tuesday, September 1 at 8:55 a.m. In collaboration with legendary Japanese futuristic artist and illustrator Hajime Sorayama, this Airbus, delivered to the company two weeks ago, has a special Airsorayama Gold livery.
Three flights per week continue to be offered, every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The company plans to add Monday departures from October.
Starlux Airlines is known for its premium product. The aircraft interiors have an elegant, futuristic and cozy “boutique hotel” feel. Even the economy class feels more spacious than on traditional...
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Albania has been a topic of conversation in recent years when it comes to air travel in Europe. The country of 2.4 million people is developing its air transport in a way that other countries would only wish for. Just look at the statistics of passengers handled at the airport in Tirana, the country's capital.
The airport itself was the fastest growing in Europe in 2025. In 2019, it handled 3,338,147 passengers. Last year, it handled 11,640,044 passengers. This is a breathtaking increase of 248.70%. There are three main factors behind this. Growing tourism, the political will to meet the needs of airlines in Albania, and the airlines themselves, who are continuously expanding their activities at Tirana Airport.
When we return to tourism, there are more and more tourists who want to visit Albania. However, their smooth movement by land is hindered by the country's underdeveloped road and railway infrastructure. The political and development representation of Albania is therefore...
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- 2026-08-28 06:05
- Changes in routes
The U2 4738 route connecting Prague with the French city of Nantes last departed from Ruzyně on June 19. It has been suspended for two months since then. easyJet is the only carrier that connected the two cities.
Operation on this route is to be resumed on August 31. The carrier plans two flights a week, every Monday and Friday. Tickets are also on sale for the winter 2026/2027 flight schedule and the summer 2027 flight schedule, when there will be another interruption during the summer holidays.
The current offer of easyJet destinations from Prague with a direct flight in the summer 2026 flight schedule looks like this: Alicante, Amsterdam, Basel, Belfast, Birmingham, Bordeaux, Bristol, Edinburgh, Geneva, Glasgow, Lisbon, Liverpool, London (Gatwick), London (Luton), Lyon, Manchester, Milan (Malpensa), Naples, Nice, Porto. A total of 20 destinations.
Compared to last year, there is no route to Mallorca. At the end of the summer schedule, the connec...
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- 2026-08-04 06:01
- Changes in routes
As part of strengthening its presence in the Italian market, Wizz Air is opening a new base at Turin airport. The carrier will gradually place two Airbus A321neo aircraft there, the first from September 2026 and the second a month later. Turin airport has been on the map of Wizz Air since 2004. Last year, 2025, Wizz Air operated more than 2,100 flights from Turin and carried over 450,000 passengers
The new base will be the seventh in the country after Rome's Leonardo da Vinci (Fiumicino) airport, Milan (Malpensa), Venice (Marco Polo), Catania (Fontanarossa), Naples and Palermo.
It is important to note that the base is not yet operational. The Hungarian carrier currently operates flights to the following destinations at Turin Airport, with aircraft from foreign bases operating: Budapest, Bucharest, Catania, Chisinau, Iasi, London (Luton), Palermo and Tirana.
With the upcoming expansion at Turin Airport, it is planning to open routes to the following destinations: Barce...
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- 2026-08-03 06:01
- Changes in routes
One to Asia and two to Africa. These are the three new routes that Wizz Air will offer from the Slovak capital from the start of the winter 2026/2027 flight schedule.
The Bratislava - Baku route will operate twice a week, every Wednesday and Saturday. It will fly for the first time on Wednesday, October 28, 2026.
The Bratislava - Agadir route will also fly twice a week, every Tuesday and Saturday. The inaugural flight will be made on Tuesday, October 27, 2026.
The Bratislava - Hurghada route will start with the same frequency as the other new routes, it will fly every Monday and Friday. It will start operating on Monday, October 26, 2026. Only on this route will the Hungarians face competition. Egyptian rival Air Cairo flies to Bratislava every Tuesday and Friday, so it will not be a direct competition.
Wizz Air plans to install direct flights from Bratislava to 25 destinations in the winter 2026/2027 flight schedule. These are: Agadir, Alicante, Athens, Baku, Barcelona (El Prat),...
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