Top travel agent folds, stranding UK tourists

▶ Thomas Cook collapse hits 600,000

British travel group Thomas Cook on Monday declared bankruptcy after failing to reach a last-ditch rescue deal, triggering the UK’s biggest repatriation since World War II to bring back tens of thousands of stranded passengers.

The 178-year-old operator, which had struggled against fierce online competition for some time and which had blamed Brexit uncertainty for a recent drop in bookings, was desperately seeking 200 million pounds ($250 million) from private investors to avert collapse.

The news leaves some 600,000 tourists stranded worldwide according to Thomas Cook, including more than 150,000 holidaymakers seeking help from the British government to return from destinations including Bulgaria, Cuba, Turkey and the US.

Earlier, in a statement published just after 1 am GMT, Thomas Cook said that “despite considerable efforts,” it was unable to reach an agreement between the company’s stakeholders and proposed new money providers.

“The company’s board has therefore concluded that it had no choice but to take steps to enter into compulsory liquidation with immediate effect.”

The UK government said it had hired planes to fly home British tourists, in an operation starting immediately.

Launching Britain’s “largest repatriation in peacetime history,” Transport Secretary Grant Shapps added that the government and UK Civil Aviation Authority had hired dozens of charter planes to fly home Thomas Cook customers.

“All customers currently abroad with Thomas Cook who are booked to return to the UK over the next two weeks will be brought home as close as possible to their booked return date,” the government said.

Both a tour operator and an airline, the travel giant’s key destinations were in southern Europe and the Mediterranean but it offered also holidays in Asia, North Africa and the Caribbean.

As well as grounding its planes, Thomas Cook has been forced to shut travel agencies, leaving the group’s 22,000 global employees out of a job.

Chinese peer Fosun, which was already the biggest shareholder in Thomas Cook, agreed last month to inject 450 million pounds into the business as part of an initial 900 million pound rescue package.