WOW air this morning issued a travel alert that it has ceased operation and that all of its flights have been cancelled. The low-cost airline advised its pending passengers in the travel alert to check available flights with other airlines, suggesting some may offer rescue fares flights.
Icelandair shortly after the travel alert announced it would assist stranded passengers by providing discounted fares to and from a range of cities in Europe and North America, including Edmonton and Toronto.
Headquartered in Reykjavík, Iceland, and based at the country’s Keflavík International Airport, WOW air operated services between Iceland, Europe, Asia, and North America. The airline was founded in November 2011 by Skúli Mogensen, whose business background is largely in technology and telecoms in Iceland, Europe, and North America.
WOW air’s inaugural flight was to Paris on May 31, 2012 and in October that same year WOW air took over the flight operations of Iceland Express. A year later, in October 2013, WOW was awarded the Air Operator‘s Certificate (AOC) by the Icelandic Transport Authority.
The airline carried more than 400,000 passengers in 2013 and in December 2014 carried its millionth passenger. WOW air’s annual passenger number grew from 2.8 million in 2017 to 3.5 million in 2018. WOW air’s Website indicates the operation employs around 1,000 people. Its fleet consists of Airbus A320, A321 and A330 aircraft.
