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PARIS, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Hungary's Wizz Air is in
negotiations with European planemaker Airbus over the
purchase of at least 100 more narrowbody jets, industry sources
said on Thursday.
Talks began several months ago and surfaced as Wizz Air
emerged as a suitor for rival easyJet and as Europe's
largest budget carrier, Ryanair, remained deadlocked
with Boeing over a major jet purchase.
Analysts say all three major European budget airlines are
forecast to expand as the COVID-19 crisis further erodes the
finances of national legacy carriers.
Talks between Wizz Air and Airbus continued over the summer
but the two sides are not yet ready to announce a deal, the
sources said. Fleet purchase talks typically take months.
Any deal would involve at least 100 aircraft, one of the
sources said.
Wizz Air, which has already ordered a total of 388 Airbus
jets, declined to comment.
A spokesman for Airbus said it always talks to customers
about their needs but never comments on such discussions.
Britain's easyJet said earlier it had rejected a takeover
approach, opting instead to raise $1.7 billion from shareholders
and go it alone in an industry battling to recover from the
pandemic.
EasyJet declined to name its suitor, but a source familiar
with the matter told Reuters it was Wizz Air. Both
airlines declined to comment.
(Reporting by Tim Hepher and Sarah Young
Editing by David Goodman and Bernadette Baum)
