The holiday horror story – Branson calls for review of rules governing failed airlines

Associated Press reported yesterday that Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson has called for an urgent review of rules governing failed airlines in light of the XL fiasco.

Sir Richard, president of Virgin Atlantic, said new procedures should be brought in allowing a collapsed firm’s fleet of planes to continue to fly under the watch of the aviation regulator.

His comments come as the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) continues its airlift of some 85,000 people left stranded when XL – the UK’s third largest tour operator – went into administration over the weekend with thousands trying to head home after XL collapse.

The UK Sunday Herald says that one of the biggest airlifts ever attempted swung into action over the weekend, as the Civil Aviation Authority struggled to rescue the 85,000 people left stranded by the collapse of Britain’s third-largest tour operator.

Despite the herculean scale of the task, the CAA promised that all passengers would be home on their original return dates or, at worst, the next day on specially commissioned “repatriation flights”. Peter Wyatt, XL’s chief executive, said the £20 million operation would be “the most challenging ever undertaken”.

Specially chartered flights have been brought in, while spare seats on already scheduled flights are also being used to bring passengers back to the UK.

Alongside the 75,000 customers covered by Air Travel Organisers’ Licensing – that covers overseas package-tour passengers – room will also be available for the 10,000 people who booked XL flights independently, although they will have to pay for the privilege as customers who booked using debit cards do not have insurance cover, sometimes to avoid an extra fee levied on credit-card users.

Tavish Scott, leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, has called for an end to the extra administration fee which is often charged if customers choose to pay for items such as flights with a credit card as opposed to a debit card.

He said, “Paying for holidays and flights with a credit card gives a level of insurance which debit cards do not offer. However, many people choose to make their booking with a debit card because they would face an extra charge for administration if they used their credit card.”

In Glasgow, flights from Turkish airline Freebird replaced journeys to and from Dalaman in Turkey and Tenerife. Most flights went out within hours of the original ones.

Many airlines, including easyJet, which offered a £75 reduction on flights for XL customers, were helping the rescue effort, but it was Richard Branson who has proved to be the saviour for many, offering cut-price or free flights on Virgin.

About 300 XL customers were flown in to Manchester from Orlando on a Virgin plane, with more flights last night and today. The airline said that XL passengers who find themselves stuck at airports in Florida and the Caribbean will be offered special one-way fares to fly home until the end of September.

The Virgin boss called yesterday for an urgent review of rules governing failed airlines in light of the XL fiasco.

Branson said new procedures should be brought in to allow a collapsed firm’s fleet of planes to continue to fly under the watch of the aviation regulator, making for less disruption across the industry.

Branson said, “It does seem that there should be an urgent review, if there are going to be more airlines and tour operator casualties, of the way in which the rescue operation is conducted.

“It does not make sense for aircraft to be lying idle at UK airports when they should be used to bring back stranded passengers of that airline.”

Kayley Hunter and her two friends flew home from Orlando, Florida, with Virgin after being informed of XL’s collapse by their tour operator.

The 23-year-old legal adviser from Darlington said: “Thank you to Richard Branson and his team, you were fantastic.”

Monarch Airlines is also helping with the repatriation effort: seven specially chartered fights arrived into Gatwick airport from Tenerife during the early hours of yesterday morning, along with one from Orlando.

At Gatwick airport on a specially chartered Monarch Airlines flight from Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt, Alison Hill spoke of her relief at being back.

The 37-year-old from Redditch, Worcestershire said she was left in tears.  Ms Hill said: “No-one actually told me, I had to find it out for myself.”  “I spent the whole day in tears in reception with a very unhappy two-year-old, wondering if I was ever going to get home.”

“We were meant to leave at 11pm and ended up getting this flight at 3.30am, so you could say we were one of the lucky ones.”

Some 200,000 people have seen future holiday plans go up in smoke as a result of the tour operator’s collapse.

Barrhead Travel is trying to mop up after XL’s collapse, rebooking holidays by using “deeds of assignment”, which means it pays for a replacement holiday and then claims back the money from the CAA, or selling customers new holidays.

Bill Munro, Barrhead’s chief executive, said that some companies are bumping up prices. He added: “We help where we can.”  “But it’s a huge exercise, bundling people onto planes and sending them home.”  â€œBut there’s even more people that were waiting to go out, who’d been saving up all year.”  â€œWe’ve been able to help by rebooking a lot of them.”  â€œSome people are trying to capitalise on other people’s misfortune by charging an extra £50 or £100 a head for a flight.”

“Now they’re charging £600 for a week’s self catering, when two days ago it was £200.”  â€œSome people might say its market forces, others would say it was capitalising.”  

“Prices shot up overnight.”  â€œThe big airlines have all put their prices up.”  â€œSome of the air fares are now ridiculous.”

“A flight to Tenerife on October 2 now costs £705, whereas before it would have been £250-£300.”

A Report by The Mole