The airline Wizz Air Hungary is temporarily not allowed to operate cargo and mail flights to the United States of America. The Department of Transportation has the Application for the so-called “Foreign Carrier Permit” rejected and justified the decision with safety concerns of the civil aviation authority FAA.

Shortly after the start of the corona pandemic, the government around Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban decided that a "state cargo plane" should be purchased. One was organized Airbus A330F formerly operated by Qatar Airways and commissioned the low-cost airline Wizz Air with the operation without a tender. The machine does not wear the usual livery, but "Hungary Air Cargo" can be read on the fuselage.

Formally, the construction chosen by the Orban government is a mixture of aircraft management and charter. The HA-LHU is primarily used on behalf of the government, but freight charter flights are also carried out for other customers. Regardless, Wizz Air earlier this year applies for charter air transport of goods and mail between any airport in the European Union and the United States of America.

For this, the so-called "Foreign Carrier Permit" is required on the part of the USA. If the application had been processed positively, the approval would initially have been limited to cargo flights, but that would have been a foot in the door for possible passenger flights. Nothing will come of it now, because the Department of Transportation has rejected the request and justified the decision with safety concerns that the US Civil Aviation Administration FAA has.

The detailed reasoning, which was served on July 20, 2022, reads that the FAA "is unable at this time to determine whether the safety oversight of Wizz Air is sufficient to support the granting of economic authority to the applicant." . This statement implies that Americans have doubts about the work of the Hungarian Civil Aviation Authority.

USA wants more information on EASA-AOC

In terms of oversight, Wizz Air is a special case because you was ever the first carrier, who opted for the then new EASA AOC. They switched from the Hungarian authority to EASA. As required by law, the operating license is still issued by the Hungarian office. This constellation seems to be new for the US FAA, because until now it has obviously not been the case that AOC and OL are issued by two different "nations". The word "nations" is written in quotation marks because Hungary is of course a sovereign state, but the European Union and its subordinate EASA are not. Both the EU and EASA have their basis in numerous treaties concluded between the member states, but they are not a separate country.

The FAA then wants to find out more and obtain "further information about the type of safety oversight agreement between the European Aviation Safety Agency EASA and the Hungarian Civil Aviation Authority". Wizz Air can only submit a new application once the EU authority and the Hungarian Aviation Authority have submitted the required documents.

On a completely different front, there is resistance to the issuing of foreign carrier permits. Several US unions have lodged formal objections. These include the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association (SWAPA), Allied Pilots Association (APA), Independent Pilots Association (IPA) and the European Cockpit Association (ECA). The workers' representatives accuse the Hungarian airline of providing inconclusive information in its application. For example, it was not explained how cargo flights or possibly later passenger flights should be carried out "competitively". It is also pointed out that Wizz Air currently has no Etops approval.

Dealing with unions could prove to boomerang

The US Pilot Associations also believe that the fact that Indigo Partners has interests in Volaris, Jetsmart, Frontier Airlines and Wizz Air could create conflicts of interest and raise antitrust issues. Dealing with trade unions is likely to weigh much more heavily: Wizz Air rejects them and that is a thorn in the side of employee representatives.

The unions have warned the FAA that approval can only be granted if Wizz Air workers are "free to unionize" and the FAA can draw attention to safety issues "including fatigue." Of course, “without having to fear negative effects on their careers”.

Wizz Air CEO Joszef Varadi apparently did not do any useful "lobbying" for the subsidiary Wizz Air Hungary to obtain US approval with several anti-union statements. For example, shortly after the opening of the Dortmund base, which was quickly closed, he said that unions were bad for business and if you were confronted with them, would the base be closed and the planes withdrawn. Only recently, in a video speech, did he indirectly demand that should also be flown when tired, for outrage among pilots and their unions. The manager also requested that ATC strikes should be banned.