Low-cost airline Wizz Air will resume flying on routes out of Vienna from the start of next month, its chief executive has told local news agency APA. Its UK arm said it will also restart flights from London Luton Airport.

The phased return to operations makes the airline among the first in Europe to announce plans to increase flights after coronavirus left many planes grounded.

The pandemic has hit international flights hard, with the number of departures at UK airports falling by 90% and leaving some at risk of closure.

Wizz Air chief executive Josef Varadi told an Aviation Week webcast that he hoped to restart operations with about 30% of the airline’s normal capacity, increasing to 75% or 80% in the next two to three months.

But he said that depended on European countries co-ordinating their pandemic measures to a greater extent. Europe is a “complete mess” at the moment, he said.

The airline said it would introduce “enhanced” health and safety measures, with new distancing measures during boarding, cabin crew wearing masks and gloves, and aircraft disinfected overnight.