A BUDGET airline has put its return to Southend Airport on hold, just two months before easyJet is expected to resume flights.

Wizz Air last year announced plans for summer flights in 2022 from Southend to destinations including Malaga, Turkey and Sicily.

The company has now cancelled those plans, although airport bosses say they are still confident that the airline will eventually return.

Glyn Jones, CEO of London Southend Airport, said: “‘The conditions facing airlines in Europe has been and continues to be very unpredictable despite encouraging recent policy announcements by the UK government. London Southend Airport is in regular dialogue with a number of airlines including Wizz Air.

“The news that easyJet will resume flights at London Southend Airport from the beginning of May is very positive and we hope to make further route announcements in due course.”

Wizz Air first started operating from Southend Airport in August 2019. It initially operated flights to Vilnius in Lithuania, and the Romanian capital Bucharest, but had to cancel its services as a result of the Covid pandemic.

Despite losing Wizz Air ahead of an expected summer surge in business, airport bosses remain hopeful a deal can be worked out to keep the airline operator as a long-term partner.

An airport spokesman said: “We continue to have an expectation that Wizz will fly from London Southend Airport in the future, but the airline does not currently have tickets on sale for this summer.”

In a statement to shareholders, Wizz Air chief executive Jozsef Varadi said: “Despite the short-term headwinds, we are cautiously optimistic for a continued recovery into spring and near-full utilisation from summer onwards.”

EasyJet is set to resume flights from Southend Airport in May, after initially quitting the airport in early 2020.

Flights to Palma are scheduled to take-off from May 1, up to four times a week on Monday, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, with flights to Malaga launching the next day from Sunday to Friday.