Fly Play airline files for bankruptcy

Hi,

Icelandic airline Fly Play has ceased all operations with immediate effect. 400 employees were laid off this morning, all flights have of course been canceled, and thousands of passengers are left without solutions. It operated flights to several European countries and the USA, including France from Paris Charles de Gaulle :(

thanks for the info—sounds like things are really rough in the airline industry right now. Also, Lufthansa is planning to cut 4,000 jobs.

Yeah, I saw that, but Lufthansa is mostly about profits for its shareholders—let’s see how the employees react.

Hi,

For Lufthansa, this is part of a race for profit to achieve a 10% margin. Plus, they’ve ordered at least 200 aircraft—you can’t say things are going badly for them. Lufthansa’s monopolistic ambitions lead them to over-rationalize tasks across their different airlines.

Play is a victim of at least two things: a drop in demand for flights to the U.S. and staff dissatisfaction, with employees moving to other airlines. Right now, the aviation industry is hiring everywhere, even poaching staff.

Michel

Hey Patrick,

After WOW’s bankruptcy in spring 2019, it’s now Play’s turn—founded by former executives—going under :(

Play ceases operations and cancels all flights

Best of luck to the roughly 400 employees and passengers.

"Unlike travel agencies or tour operators, airlines aren’t required to have a financial guarantee fund in case of bankruptcy. When a carrier stops operating, passengers usually end up without automatic refunds or coverage for their return trip.

They then have to turn to their credit card issuer to try and get a refund—or, if the trip was booked as part of a package, contact the travel agency...

The agency must find a solution, which will remain at its own expense.

This lack of a specific guarantee mechanism for airlines leaves travelers particularly vulnerable in case of failure, especially when purchasing a standalone flight."

Hi Jérôme,

Yes, it's tough for employees and confusing for those with bookings—hang in there, everyone.

Yes, it's tough for employees and disorienting for those with bookings—hang in there.

Evening, that’s exactly the problem... One (big) company laying off or cutting jobs, plus another, plus another—it just means more unemployed people in the job market. And while they’re looking for new jobs, they’re not spending money, so they’re not buying flight tickets to treat themselves to a vacation in Thailand, for example. And since companies are forced to cut costs because they’re not competitive enough against global competition, it’s the same old vicious cycle. It’s like the Henry Ford analogy: he paid his workers, the laborers, high wages so they could buy the cars they were producing.

Okay,

We should also mention that FLY PLAY was founded on the ashes of other failed Icelandic airlines—like WOW Air, for example. So, there’s a certain vibe of picking up the scraps (on the cheap) and trying more or less the same thing again (with a bit of stubbornness)... and bankruptcy again!

Chris