No-frills airline goes bust
Danish no-frills airline Cimber Sterling has declared bankruptcy after its owners pulled their financial support, leaving passengers holding worthless tickets and 890 staff without jobs.
The airline issued a statement which said one or more administrators will be appointed by a court to try to preserve as much of the operations as possible under a reconstructed company. For the time being, all flights have been cancelled.
The airline is 70.8% owned by Mansvell Enterprises, an investment vehicle of Ukrainian businessman Igor Kolomoisky.
Low cost Spanish airline Vueling is offering rescue fares for any passengers holding valid tickets with Cimber Sterling between Spain and Denmark.
Tickets can be purchased until Sunday, 6 May for departures until Thursday, 10 May at a price of 100€ for direct flights between Copenhagen-Barcelona or Aalborg-Barcelona
Connecting flights will be charged at 150€ including Malaga/Alicante/Palma de Mallorca/Gran Canaria or any other Spanish airport to Copenhagen or Aalborg via Barcelona. Prices are exclusive of taxes and charges and subject to availability of rescue fare.
Cimber Sterling said it was hit by fierce competition between low-cost carriers and rising costs when it expanded beyond Scandinavia.
"The board of directors and the management team have worked intensely to ensure a turnaround of the company for several months but unfortunately we did not succeed before we ran out of time," chief executive Jan Palmer said in the statement.
The airline said a plan would be drafted within three days to outline the company’s future activities which are expected to focus on domestic traffic.
By Diane Evans and Linsey McNeill
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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