Wow Air is to move its existing daily service from Gatwick airport over to Stansted from March 31, 2019.
The Icelandic carrier has also been operating seasonal daily flights from Stansted – these will not return, so Wow is effectively consolidating its twice daily (peak season) flights from London into a daily year-round service at Stansted.
The new schedule at Stansted will see flights departing London at 1120 – the airline said that the timing will ensure that onward connections to the US that are currently in place at Gatwick will not be interrupted.
Commenting on the news Mats Sigurdson, London Stansted Aviation Director, said:
“We’re delighted that Wow Air has chosen to base its London operation at London Stansted Airport.
“We saw really high demand over the summer from passengers choosing Wow’s flights to Reykjavik and beyond to destinations across the United States, and inbound tourism to London and the East of England.
“We look forward to welcoming more Wow Air passengers to London Stansted Airport early next year.”
The airline says that to celebrate the move it has released special fares to select US and Canadian destinations, via Iceland, starting from £149.99 each way, for travel in April, May, September and October 2019.
Wow Air has also announced plans to reintroduce seasonal flights between Edinburgh and Iceland in June 2019, with a three times weekly service which the carrier says will “ensure time for transatlantic connections”.
Wow has faced a turbulent period over the last few months, with a planned takeover by Icelandair abandoned, and the carrier being forced to downsize its fleet and cut routes.
The airline has reached an agreement in principal for private equity firm Indigo Partners to invest in the carrier.
Indigo Partners has a controlling interest in US low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines, as well as stakes in Hungarian airline Wizz Air, Chilean low-cost start-up Jet Smart, and Mexican budget airline Volaris.
