Primera Air turned many heads when it announced in mid-2017 that it’d start selling tickets between the US and Europe starting at just $99 one-way. Since its transatlantic — which TPG was on board to review — we’ve seen almost an equal amount of new route announcements and cancellations. And it seems that the $99 fares weren’t enough to fill up aircraft as fares have dropped as low as $63 one-way.
Well, it seems this ultra-low cost business model hasn’t worked out for Primera Air. Reports are surfacing Monday that the airline plans to declare bankruptcy on Oct. 2.
An email from Primera’s Director of Flight Operations Anders Ludvigsson to Primera Air crew members has been shared online. In the letter, the director indicates that Airbus’ delay in delivering new aircraft — and the subsequent “high costs for wet lease and cancellations” — created substantial losses for the airline. The owner of Primera Air was unable to secure funding necessary for continuing operations, which is what is leading to the bankruptcy declaration.
The email states that the airline is “working on arranging travel home for crews who happen to be on outstations,” an indication that the airline will cease operations shortly.
TPG has reached out to Primera Air to confirm or refute this report, but didn’t receive an immediate response to the request.
For now, we’d recommend holding off on purchasing any Primera Air flights or additional services/add-ons for existing bookings. If you have a booking, now would be a good time to check which credit card you used to purchase the flight and familiarize yourself with the card’s trip cancellation policies and other travel benefits.
We will continue to share any details we are able to confirm about Primera Air’s seemingly imminent bankruptcy and what affected travelers should do.
Featured image by Anna Zvereva / Flickr