Budget Carriers Ryanair and Wizz Air Added Capacity to Green List Destinations

In reaction to the government’s modification of the traffic light ratings, budget carriers Ryanair and Wizz Air swiftly added capacity to green list destinations.

On Thursday evening, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps revealed that Malta, the Balearic Islands, Madeira, some Caribbean islands, and a few other places will be added to the green list, removing the need for travelers arriving in the UK from such locations to self-isolate.

In July, August, and September, Ryanair will add 200,000 new seats from the UK to Malta, Ibiza, and Majorca.

Wizz Air will resume service to Malta, Majorca, and Madeira on 30th June, as well as Iceland and Gibraltar, which are still on the green list.

Ryanair’s marketing and digital director, Dara Brady, said: “This announcement is a small step in the right direction and, while we welcome the addition of Malta and the Balearics to the UK’s green list, we urge the government to immediately add equally safe destinations such as Cyprus, the Canaries, and the Greek islands, and also to immediately allow vaccinated UK and EU citizens to travel freely between the UK and the EU without restrictions.”

Wizz Air UK’s managing director, Owain Jones, said: “The Wizz Air team welcomes the announcement from the UK government that more destinations have been added to the green list and that fully vaccinated travelers will be able to return from amber destinations without quarantining later this summer, meaning our customers have more choice when deciding on their long-awaited post-lockdown getaway.

“We encourage the government to add more European destinations to the green list, using a risk-based approach, to get more people traveling again.”

Meanwhile, on Thursday, Play, a new Icelandic budget carrier, launched service from Stansted to Reykjavik in Iceland (24th June).

Play will fly to Iceland four times a week from Stansted on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays, with the goal of adding daily flights in the future.