Spanair to lay off 90 pilots

Spanair to lay off 90 pilots

Spanair is to lay off 90 pilots as it looks to counter the global economic slowdown.

The airline, a Spanish subsidiary of Scandinavian airline SAS, agreed the job cuts with Spanish labour union Sepla. It is part of a plan to reduce operations in the Spanish destinations of Majorca, Tenerife, Alicante, Bilbao and Malaga and the Canary Islands.

Spanair has been hit hard by the global economic slowdown and higher fuel costs, while in August, more than 150 people died in the company’s worst air disaster in Madrid.

Icelandic-owned airline bankrupt

Icelandic-owned airline bankrupt

The Icelandic-owned Danish budget airline Sterling Airways is to file for bankruptcy.

The airline blamed the Icelandic financial collapse for making its owner unable to continue funding its restructuring programme.

Sterling, owned by Iceland’s Northern Travel Holdings, operated flights between Scandinavian airports and a range of other European destinations such as Alicante, Malaga and Nice.

It has cancelled all its flights, leaving passengers stranded.

“Over a three to four week period, the whole [Icelandic] financial system melted down, and that resulted in our shareholder being unable to continue his support to the company,” Sterling said in a statement on its website.

“Negotiations have been conducted with several potential investors, but it was impossible to make ends meet.”