Meet The Winners: Daria Sergeeva

Daria Sergeeva, Airport Development Team Manager West at Wizz Air, spoke to Routes about what it meant to win the Rising Star category at the Routes World 2025 Awards in Hong Kong and the airline’s recent air service achievements.

Since joining Wizz Air in 2022, Daria Sergeeva has taken responsibility for a portfolio of more than 30 airports across the UK, Germany, Austria and the CIS countries. During her time leading airport negotiations, Wizz Air has launched nearly 40 new routes across these markets.

Her collaborative approach with airport partners has been central to Wizz Air’s network growth. Daria has overseen the launch of four new routes each from Cologne Bonn Airport and Hamburg Airport, driven expansion at Albrecht Dürer Airport Nürnberg, and played a key role in positioning Wizz Air as the sole ULCC operating from Stuttgart Airport.

Daria’s colleagues at Wizz Air describe her as an exemplary leader whose initiatives have played a key role in strengthening the airline’s brand across its core markets. Airport partners also praise her proactive approach and responsiveness, citing her reputation as a trusted collaborator—qualities that contributed to her recognition at the Routes World 2025 Awards.

Speaking about her Rising Star award, Sergeeva said: “It’s a great career milestone, not only for me personally but for anyone who works in the aviation industry. It’s confirmation that the efforts you put into building relationships with airports, delivering the routes, and all the deals we have are very important.”

Daria’s commitment to supporting female leadership in aviation remains central to her work, and the award highlights the impact and inspiration of her efforts. “I would love to inspire young professionals to continue their part in aviation as a very exciting and interesting industry,” she said. “I believe this award can serve as an inspiration to others, particularly women in aviation.”

Since her award win at Routes World, Daria has taken on a new role as Team Manager Airport Development West, leading a team with a portfolio of over 60 airports in Western Europe.

Commenting on the airline’s experience at Routes World in Hong Kong, Daria emphasized the value of in-person engagement in strengthening partnerships. “Traveling to different sides of the world to meet with our partners is quite challenging, so we’re always happy to attend the Routes events,” she said. “They bring a lot of value with our partners, and of course deliver better results, because we believe personal connections are very important for our business.”

As a Routes 360 member, Wizz Air regularly uploads its fleet and route information to help streamline meetings and collaboration at Routes events.