6 am 03 February 2012 – Malév ceases its operation

Based on the Board of Directors’ decision Hungary’s National Airline ceased its operation to minimize its losses. According to this statement, after nearly 66 years of continuous operation, Malév aircrafts will not depart from 6 am 03 February.

“Unfortunately, the event occurred which we had a greatest fear of and we wanted to avoid with might and main. Although, until the latter days there were prospects to continue operation and the trust of our passengers is unbroken, our partners lost their trust due to the information published in the last days and they started to ask for payment of their services in advance. This speeded up the cash outflow and the situation of the airline became untenable. It is also known that the owner, despite the best intentions, is unable to provide additional financial resources to operate after the EU decision. Considering all these the Board decided to order the cease of operation of the Hungary’s National Airline. We apologize to all of our passengers.” - announced CEO Loránt Limburger.

The Call Centre informs the Airline’s passengers about the way how they can get to their destinations and the possibilities of compensation. If you purchased your tickets online please contact +36 1 802 11 11. If you tickets were purchased from a local travel agent please contact them for more information.

Information for Passengers


We are coordinating with the biggest European airlines to confirm under what conditions they can continue to accept Malev tickets. The Hungarian Government has established a fund of HUF 2 billion (approximately EUR 6.5 million) for foreign airlines for covering the price of rerouting passengers. Those passengers who buy new tickets can have the price of their tickets refunded from this fund.