Which Airlines Are Deemed To Be Most At Risk Of Going Bust?

Tojo_Ralph

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It would appear that people were booking flights with XL right up until the moment that they went bust and that these poor souls were totally oblivious to the fact that XL had been teetering on the edge for a while.

I was therefore wondering, are there any pointers out there as to which airlines are most at risk or are likely to go bust next?

dmg24

Now I'm not a betting person, and I would never even advocate discussion of anything gambling related, but I did notice that some non ethically challenged businesses may be running a polite discussion on the subject?

ynot2005

there is no p-u-s-s-y footing around gambling on the gambling forum, its downright encouraged.

yes tojo ralph the pointers are where the punters are staking their money

alitalia and sky europe seem to be the nags with the best form, and they are ahead of spanair in the betting, now that must mean something!!

Tozer

ynot2005 wrote: »

there is no p-u-s-s-y footing around gambling on the gambling forum, its downright encouraged.

yes tojo ralph the pointers are where the punters are staking their money

alitalia and sky europe seem to be the nags with the best form, and they are ahead of spanair in the betting, now that must mean something!!

Yeah, because national airlines go bust ever so often. Spanair (particularly after a recent crash) I can understand. Air Berlin, maybe even Flybe but not national carriers.

Oh, and before someone says "Swissair" - saw one in Heathrow just the other day....Didn't see a Laker, People Express, Silverjet, TWA, PanAm, Maxjet, DanAir, Air Europe, Orion, Eastern, Eos, Oasis, Nationwide,Skybus, Zoom.....

Point is airlines go bust just like any other business. And with hugely expensive asset cost, running cost and risk (oil, less passengers, etc) who the hell would finance them now?

PBA

Tozer wrote: »

Yeah, because national airlines go bust ever so often. Spanair (particularly after a recent crash) I can understand. Air Berlin, maybe even Flybe but not national carriers.

Oh, and before someone says "Swissair" - saw one in Heathrow just the other day....Didn't see a Laker, People Express, Silverjet, TWA, PanAm, Maxjet, DanAir, Air Europe, Orion, Eastern, Eos, Oasis, Nationwide,Skybus, Zoom.....

Point is airlines go bust just like any other business. And with hugely expensive asset cost, running cost and risk (oil, less passengers, etc) who the hell would finance them now?

I remember a few years ago, over on airliners.net they were confident US Airways was about to go bust. Yet I booked my summer holiday with them, and they did me proud. Lesson being I guess don't avoid a company that's supposedly doing badly, just make sure you're properly insured in case the company you're booked with has problems.

Ms_Chocaholic

They were saying on one of the news channels that it is rare that travel insurance policies cover you for when an airline goes bust - not sure how true it is tho

James1715

I would say its extremely unlikely that Flybe will go bust. The management policy is very similar to larger carriers such as BA, Virgin etc.

Only a few days ago Flybe bucked the trend of most airlines, announcing a 14% rise in profits for Q1 of 2008:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7603815.stm

If they become 'troubled' there is certainly the possibility of route cuts, surcharging etc. but this will be phased in and I cant see them leaving their passengers stranded.

Spendless_Dosh

Just wanted to pick up on the comment about how to cover yourself if a scheduled carrier goes bust. You need to make sure your travel insurance has an element called Scheduled Airline Failure Insurance (SAFI) this will cover your risk associated with this type of problem. Not all travel policies have it so check carefully.

Hope that is useful information.

Jock123_3

I booked a flight in August for Septmber 2009 by credit card.

If the airline goes bust in September 2009 can I claim back from the credit card company or is there a time limit from date of purchase, say 12 months?

Tojo_Ralph

PBA wrote: »

A few years ago, over on airliners.net they were confident US Airways was about to go bust. Yet I booked my summer holiday with them, and they did me proud. Lesson being I guess don't avoid a company that's supposedly doing badly.

There are a few current XL threads that you may wish to post that lesson learned advice on.

dannyrado

Problem is this whole thing is self-perpetuating, and irresposible. Just as with the 'credit crunch', the more people talk about the 'dodgy' state of an airline, the less people book, and the more 'dodgy' it becomes.

Willy Walsh has done no-one any favours with his recent comments either, just trying to scare monger people into booking with BA.

FlyBe are probably in one of the best possitions btw. With strong business routes, and efficient aircraft, they appear not to be over-streched.