The budget carrier announced its daily Luton-Moscow and Luton-St Petersburg routes in July.

Its first Moscow flight is due to take off at 3.20pm and St Petersburg at 10.40pm.

Fares lead in from £25.99.

Wizz becomes the sole UK carrier offering direct London-St Petersburg flights.

Luton has commissioned 3D street art installations depicting scenes from the two iconic cities, which are on display outside the airport terminal.

The routes grow Wizz’s UK route network to 107 destinations across 30 countries from 11 airports, with 63 routes departing its Luton base.

Owain Jones, Wizz Air UK managing director, said: “Those looking to immerse themselves in the rich history and culture of Moscow and St Petersburg need look no further, as our direct, low-fare flights make these cities more accessible than ever.

"Wizz Air is delighted to continually offer our customers more opportunities to discover new and exciting destinations across Europe and further afield.”