- Collapse for the second time in three years
- 276 employees were laid off by the administration
- About 75,000 customers had future bookings
- Hurt by delayed delivery of planes
- Competitors see increasing demand
LONDON, Jan 28 (Portal) – British regional airline Flybe halted trading on Saturday for the second time in three years, with all flights canceled and 276 workers laid off.
A statement on Flybe’s website said the airline, which operated scheduled flights across the UK from Belfast, Birmingham and Heathrow, as well as to Amsterdam and Geneva, had filed for bankruptcy, a form of protection from creditors.
“Flybe has now ceased trading and all Flybe operated flights to and from the UK have been canceled and will not be rescheduled,” it said.
It advised passengers not to travel to airports.
A spokesman for administrator Interpath Advisory said about 75,000 Flybe customers had future bookings that were not being considered now.
Headquartered in Birmingham, Flybe operated a fleet of eight leased Q400 turboprop aircraft on 21 routes to 17 destinations across the UK and Europe.
Interpath’s David Pike and Mike Pink have been appointed joint administrators of Flybe.
Pike said Flybe had grappled with a series of shocks since its restart last year, not least the delayed delivery of 17 aircraft from lessors, which severely hampered its efforts to build capacity and remain competitive.
He said downsized elements of Flybe’s operating platform would remain in place for a short period of time while there was a possibility of a rescue transaction. He urged anyone interested to get in touch.
An Interpath spokesman said 45 members of Flybe’s 321-strong workforce have been retained for the time being.
The British Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said it would advise and inform affected passengers.
“It’s always sad to see an airline go into administration and we know that Flybe’s decision to halt trading will be distressing for all of their employees and customers,” said Paul Smith, CAA’s consumer director.
Hurt by the UK’s COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, Flybe first went into administration in March 2020, impacting 2,400 jobs.
In October 2020 it was sold to Thyme Opco Ltd, a company controlled by Cyrus Capital, and it resumed flights in April 2022, albeit on a smaller scale.
Flybe’s demise contrasts with a post-pandemic surge in demand for air travel.
Low-cost airlines Ryanair (RYA.I), Europe’s largest airline, and Britain’s easyJet (EZJ.L) have reported record summer holiday bookings, suggesting consumers are still keen to travel despite a looming recession.
Louise Haigh, transport spokeswoman for the opposition Labor Party, said the Flybe collapse was “devastating news” for staff and customers.
“Passenger protections just aren’t strong enough – and ministers have sat on their hands for years, failing to introduce long-promised airline bankruptcy legislation,” she said.
The Unite union said the government had not learned any lessons from Flybe’s first collapse.
Reporting by Mrinmay Dey and Akriti Sharma in Bengaluru and James Davey in London, editing by William Mallard and Jason Neely
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