Orlando International Airport was the scene Monday of long waits and some agitated travelers in the wake of Thomas Cook airline’s financial collapse and shutdown.
The U.K. government flew aviation representatives to Orlando’s airport to help manage the rebooking of thousands of ticketholders onto flights by Virgin Atlantic and charter airline Atlas Air.
“All customers currently abroad with Thomas Cook who are booked to return to the UK over the next 2 weeks will be brought home as close as possible to their booked return date,” the government said Monday in a statement.
Orlando International Airport reported Monday afternoon that 43 flights through Oct. 12 were canceled.
Ticketholders for the Thomas Cook flight to Manchester, England, were directed to Virgin’s ticket counters, which resulted in a line extending from the ticketing lobby to near the interior food court.
Passengers were told that Virgin was having difficult transferring Thomas Cook booking information.
But travelers, some joking about being Thomas Cook refugees, were generally relieved that a substitute flight had been made available on the same day and nearly the same hour of their original flight.
“We learned last night, and it was upsetting,” said Ben Trynka, 28, traveling with his fiancée, Debbie Whitmore, and waiting in line for the Virgin counter. “It’s fantastic to be here for this flight.”
Also traveling to Manchester, Carol Harris on Sunday rescheduled a Thomas Cook flight from Thursday to Monday. Then, minutes later, when she tried to check in online, the airline’s website “said basically that Thomas Cook was out of business.”
Hans Zmierczak, another Manchester passenger, said his disappointment – one noted by many other travelers – was that neither Thomas Cook nor the British government proactively alerted travelers to the canceled flights via phone, text or email.
“We had to figure it out on our own,” he said.
At the other side of the airport, at what had been Thomas Cook’s ticket counter, and where electronic signage still displayed airline’s insignia, the major difficulty was that the more 300 Thomas Cook passengers bound for Glasgow, Scotland, were told the replacement plane had room for 250.
That left Andrea Fasolillo, 33, frustrated with U.K. officials for not having a solution for the more than 50 travelers bumped off the flight. He had been counting on catching connecting flights to visit his son in Romania.
The airline declared bankruptcy, leaving passengers stranded.
(Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
“Here it looks like no one here knows what to do,” Fasolillo said.
Nicola Hughes, 38, and her husband, Darren, live an hour from Glasgow. They were among passengers not able to get onto the smaller plane. They were left waiting for word on whether another plane would be provided or if they would have to stay another night in Orlando.
“We did have a brilliant vacation,” Nicola Hughes said.
Drama over Thomas Cook’s need for $200 million in financial assistance had made news in England for some weeks and many fliers said they were aware of potential trouble but were assured by the airline that no cancellations would occur.
In its statement on Monday, the U.K. government said, “Thomas Cook’s financial problems are substantial, long-standing and well documented and government financial assistance would not have resolved them.”
The U.K.’s Civil Aviation Authority reported that it hired dozens of charter planes to fly citizens home free of charge, beginning on Monday with what has been dubbed “Operation Matterhorn.”
“Customers are being strongly advised not to cut short their holiday or go to the airport without checking the website for information about their return journey,” the U.K. government stated.
The international news late Sunday and the cancellation of Monday’s afternoon flights from Orlando and from six other U.S. cities triggered social-media comments of anger over delays and also over employees who lost jobs.
Travelers at Orlando’s airport also noted the massive job loss from Thomas Cook’s shutdown.
“We knew we would get home somehow,” said Robert Marshall, headed to Manchester. “But a lot of people lost their jobs.”
Orlando airport spokeswoman Carolyn Fennell said three Thomas Cook flights departed from Orlando on Sunday afternoon and the airport was informed last Sunday night that further flights had been canceled.
Thomas Cook’s primary website was limited Monday morning to a short statement: “Thomas Cook UK Plc and associated UK entities have entered Compulsory Liquidation and are now under the control of the Official Receiver.”
The statement concludes with: “The UK business has ceased trading with immediate effect and all future flights and holidays are canceled. A dedicated support service is being provided by The Civil Aviation Authority to assist customers currently overseas and those in the UK with future bookings.”
Among international visitors to the United States last year, U.K. citizens accounted for the third most, with 18.5 million, ranking behind Canada and Mexico, according to the U.S. International Trade Administration.
In the U.S., Thomas Cook also provided flights to Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, San Francisco and Seattle.
The U.K.-based airline carried both charter and regular-schedule passengers and had a distinctly British feel, serving fruit-flavored drink called “squash” at the beginning of flights and large cups of strong tea before landing.
Thomas Cook began flights from Orlando International Airport to Manchester, Glasgow and Belfast in 2014, and to London’s Gatwick Airport in 2015.
During the past year, nearly 270,000 Thomas Cook passengers arrived at and left Orlando’s airport.
The airline has ranked as the 10th busiest among those providing international service at Orlando International Airport.
“This repatriation is hugely complex and we are working around the clock to support passengers,” the U.K. government warned Monday. “These repatriation flights will only be operating for the next two weeks. After this date you will have to make your own travel arrangements.”
kspear@orlandosentinel.com
