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Another budget carrier has reportedly collapsed, joining the beleaguered Spirit Airlines, which shut down all operations earlier this month.
Magnicharters, a low-cost Mexican airline, filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this week in the First District Court in Mexico City, according to reports.
The decision followed the airline’s grounding of all flights last month, despite initially stating the suspension would only last a fortnight.
Just days ago, UK chartered airline Zenith Aviation Limited – a prominent private jet operator – also stopped flying.
The Magincharters carrier initially cited “operational problems” as the reason for the cancellations, but later had its Air Operator Certificate temporarily revoked after failing to cover essential costs, including technical support, maintenance, spare parts and staff training.
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As of Friday, Magnicharters had not released any public statement, though its website displayed no available flights and was redirecting customers to a helpline for enquiries, according to the Independent.
Earlier this month, Spirit Airlines cancelled all remaining flights after being unable to exit bankruptcy. Spirit, previously valued at up to $5.5 billion on the stock market and famous for its distinctive bright yellow aircraft, halted all operations on 2 May, with its final flight departing from Detroit to Dallas.
“For more than 30 years, Spirit Airlines has played a pioneering role in making travel more accessible and bringing people together while driving affordability across the industry,” CEO Dave Davis said in a statement. The announcement followed two bankruptcy filings within two years, which allowed Spirit to settle its debts with lenders.
FILE – A Spirit Airlines 319 Airbus approaches Manchester Boston Regional Airport for a landing, June 2, 2023, in Manchester, N.H. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File) (Image: AP)
This was followed by a frantic, last-ditch effort to cut costs by slashing routes, wringing concessions from unions and pursuing a potential financing arrangement with the Trump administration that could have thrown the airline a lifeline had it come to fruition. “This is tremendously disappointing and not the outcome any of us wanted,” Davis said.
Days after Spirit Airlines shut down in the middle of the night, a lawyer for the defunct budget carrier stood before a bankruptcy judge and apologized to the price-conscious customers who might struggle to find affordable flights in its absence.
“We apologize most specifically to those Americans who may now be priced entirely out,” Spirit lawyer Marshall Huebner said in court, thanking all the passengers who relied on the airline during its 34-year run, many of whom, he said, “could not otherwise have afforded air travel.”
