PASSENGERS left stranded after budget airline WOW Air went bust have voiced their fury as they’re forced to miss honeymoons, funerals and holidays .
Passengers flying to and from London Gatwick are among those to have received texts and e-mails this morning telling them their flights had been scrapped.
Alamy
Twitter / Travelgirlto
The Icelandic Airline posted a short statement on its website this morning saying it has ceased trading.
It had been scheduled to carry passengers between Iceland’s Reykjavik Airport and London Gatwick on four services today.
Other destinations included Dublin, Amsterdam, Berlin and Paris.
The airline used its Reykjavik base as a hub airport to connect Europe and North America – with UK services operating from Gatwick, Stansted, Bristol and Edinburgh.
Consumer watchdog Which? said it found WOW had been still been selling tickets to passengers an hour before it went bust.
Details on flights available to stranded passengers are set to be published in the coming hours.
STRANDED PASSENGERS LEFT FUMING OVER CANCELLED FLIGHTS
Alexandra Spence, a research analyst from Toronto, Canada, was due to fly home from Berlin on Saturday.
She said: “I have yet to receive any formal indication from Wow, and only a few days ago they emailed me to see if I wanted to upgrade my flight. So now I have paid for a return flight home that no longer exists. I still can’t believe it.
“I’m now scrambling to find a flight that same day. It’s last minute so the prices have skyrocketed and I don’t imagine I’ll be getting a refund from Wow.”
Jen and Aoife O’Dwyer, from Dublin, had been due to fly on their honeymoon this weekend but have been forced to cancel following the airline’s closure.
Jen tweeted: “Heartbroken tis (sic) morning, we were due to fly to Iceland on Saturday for our postponed honeymoon and @wowairsupport has folded.”
Aoife added: “Absolutely devastated with the news of @wow_air ceasing operations this morning. Our dream honeymoon trip to Iceland gets postponed again.”
Denise Riordan has been left stranded in Baltimore, US, after her flight to Dublin was cancelled this morning.
She told the London Evening Standard: “The airline sent stock texts and emails offering a refund or rebooking but they aren’t in a position to do anything for passengers.
Have you been affected by the collapse of WOW Air? Contact our newsdesk on 0207 782 4368 or e-mail richard.wheatstone@the-sun.co.uk
“I am considering whether to pay a lot of money to go anyway – family is so important – but it’s $2000 return now, when I’d paid $623.
“You get what you pay for, or not, as the case may be.
“I’m feeling so disappointed but I’m not going to let myself get angry.”
Other passengers said they fear they will be forced to miss funerals and holidays because of the closure.
Natalie Overland wrote on Twitter: “Nooo I need to see my husband and don’t have any money to rebook.”
Kim Kennedy said: “My son and his girlfriend went to Iceland and got engaged. Now they are stranded and worried about having enough money to secure a ticket.”
Adarsh Ananthachar added: “We a group of 5 friends had planned a full fledged 9 days long trip to Iceland based on your flights. We are baffled by your cease decision. What is another alternative or solution for this.”
TROUBLED AIRLINE FAMED FOR CHEAP TRANSATLANTIC FLIGHTS
WOW Air was launched in 2012 and had a fleet of 11 planes.
It built its name on eye-catching low cost flights such as £99 for one-way flights between London and New York.
The firm employed around 1,000 people and carried 3.5 million passengers last year, but was struggling with debts of around £150m.
Earlier this week, WOW said it was looking to secure a cash lifeline from investors to continue trading but talks are believed to have broken down last night.
At the time, WOW Air announced all flights had been postponed as they were in the “final stages of finalising equity raise with a group of investors”.
But shortly after 8am today the airline confirmed it had collapsed.
A short statement posted on its website said: “WOW AIR has ceased operation. All WOW AIR flights have been cancelled.”
How to get a refund or compensation?
THOUSANDS of WowAir customers have been left stranded this morning after the airline cancelled all flights.
Can I get a refund? If you booked directly with WowAir by credit card then you need to contact your lender to claim under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, as long as you paid over £100. If you paid by debit card then you may be able to get a refund by going to your bank and using Chargeback.
If you booked using a third party travel agent within the EEA as part of a third party holiday then you may be covered under the Package Travel Directive and you can contact your travel agent to book an alternative flight.
If you booked with agent or holiday website and they are ATOL protected then you’ll get flights rebooked or refused.
Claim on insurance
If you can’t claim compensation directly through the airline, your travel insurance may refund you but it depends on the terms and conditions of your policy.
If you’ve booked a hotel or accommodation then insurance may cover the refund.
“Passengers are advised to check available flights with other airlines. Some airlines may offer flights at a reduced rate, so-called rescue fares, in light of the circumstances.”
The budget carrier is one of a string of airlines to fail over the past two years – partly down to a sharp rise in oil prices.
Monarch Airlines, Primera Air and Flybmi are among the casualties while Flybe was bought up by a consortium including Virgin Airlines last month.
Why did Wow Air go under?
The Icelandic airline launched their first flight in 2012, founded by Skuli Mogensen, between Europe after travelling from Iceland to Paris.
In 2015, the airline expanded into long-haul travel, launching flights to the US and Canada.
However, rumours of financial difficulties started in October 2018 when the airline cancelled three of their US routes – St Louis, Cincinnati and Cleveland.
Wow Air later reduced their services to India before they even launched with routes to Delhi just three times a week, not five times as planned.
In November 2018, the airline was looking for investors with rumours of a deal with Icelandair.
By the end of the month, Icelandair announced they had abandoned plans to acquire the carrier.
Wow Air also returned four aircraft, two Airbus A320s and two Airbus A330s and sold four Airbus A321s, reducing the fleet from 20 to 11.
Despite reported passenger numbers of 3.5 million in 2018, the airline began cancelling a number of routes earlier this week.
Last-minute talks with Icelandair fell through, before all flights were cancelled this morning following the news the airline had gone under.
Twitter / mkmani
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