About 7,000 people are reportedly affected after Spanish airline Air Comet’s fleet was grounded this week by officials over its failure to pay debts.
The low-cost Spanish carrier owes 17m euros to Germany’s Nord Bank in lease payments and Air Comet says it is seeking to lay off all of its nearly 700 employees. The Madrid-based company – which specialises in cheap flights to Latin America – also says it has filed for bankruptcy.
The Development Ministry has said that for now, four chartered flights will fly to Buenos Aires, Lima, Bogota and Quito, reported newspaper El Tiempo Thursday.
Priority for these flights will be given to passengers who are in transit (going back to Latin America) as well as those who have an urgent reason (which will be analysed) and those who are en route and accept to fly before December 26 however, passengers must give up their return passage, which means they will be forced to seek a new return flight.
Some passengers who have now been stranded for several days at airports in Spain and Latin America have threatened to go on hunger strike in protest over the situation.