A NEW route to Romania’s “cultural capital” is set to launch from Southend Airport.

Wizz Air will introduce the new service, to Iasi, from August next year.

Flights will operate four times per week.

Iasi is widely acknowledged to be the cultural capital of Romania and is dubbed the ‘City of a Hundred Churches’. It is also home to Romania’s oldest monument; the Obelist of Lions. Glyn Jones, CEO of Stobart Aviation, which runs Southend Airport, said: “It is fantastic news that Wizz Air is immediately looking to grow the number of routes it is operating from our quick and easy airport, London Southend.

“The initial flights which start this month have already proved popular, and passengers will have even more choice in terms of flying to Central and Eastern Europe next summer.

“With our own railway station just 100 paces from the terminal door, up to six trains an hour into London, and our award-winning customer service, we expect demand for flights to Romania and Lithuania [which is already in place] to continue to grow.”

Owain Jones, managing Director, Wizz Air UK said: “We are delighted to add another exciting route to a perfect city break destination.

“Iasi is a lively eastern Romanian city, packed with cultural delights and nature attractions, and is the newest destination in Wizz Air’s extensive network from the UK.

“We are thrilled to offer our customers even more opportunities to discover unique destinations across Europe and beyond alongside low fares and a high quality on-board service.

“The Wizz team looks forward to welcoming customers old and new on-board Europe’s greenest fleet. Flights will operation on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.