British tour operator and airliner Thomas Cook ceased operations Sunday night, stranding hundreds of thousands of travelers.
The collapse left about 150,000 Britons stranded abroad and affected about 600,000 people total around the world, according to reports.
The U.K. Civil Aviation Authority said the 178-year-old company had suspended all operations and all flights were canceled.
The Civil Aviation Authority said the regulator and government were working to provide repatriation flights until Oct. 6 for Britons to return home. The effort was described by British Transport Minister Grant Shapps as the largest peacetime repatriation in the United Kingdom’s history.
“We will bring everyone home,” Schapps said. “An enormous task, there will be some delays, but we’re working round the clock to do everything we can.”
Very sadly Thomas Cook has collapsed. The biggest UK peacetime repatriation in history is underway. We will bring everyone home. An enormous task, there will be some delays, but we’re working round the clock to do everything we can. Visit https://t.co/0wVHltRgqB for details.
— Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) September 23, 2019
The Civil Aviation Authority said the first repatriation flight had departed from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York with more than 300 passengers on board early Monday.
The first Civil Aviation Authority repatriation flight has now left JFK, headed for Manchester with over 300 passengers on board.
It is estimated to arrive at 5PM today.
If you have been impacted by #ThomasCook ceasing trading, please visit our website:https://t.co/g4G2b6RlHc pic.twitter.com/pfVPG6bL6Y
— UK Civil Aviation Authority (@UK_CAA) September 23, 2019
Thomas Cook’s chief executive Peter Fankhauser said the company was unable to obtain necessary financing for the debt-ridden company.
“We have worked exhaustively in the past few days to resolve the outstanding issues on an agreement to secure Thomas Cook’s future for its employees, customers and suppliers. Although a deal had been largely agreed, an additional facility requested in the last few days of negotiations presented a challenge that ultimately proved insurmountable,” he said in a statement. “It is a matter of profound regret to me and the rest of the board that we were not successful.”
