Holidays ruined for 60,000 as travel firm folds

An estimated 13,000 people caught abroad when a budget travel firm collapsed yesterday have been assured they will be able to return home as planned.

But more than 60,000 people are thought to have had their holiday plans thrown into disarray with the collapse of British-based Kiss Flights and its parent company Flight Options.

The second failure of a British travel firm in a week and the third in a month had prompted fears of further closures in the autumn when the summer season winds down. Sun4u collapsed last week and Goldtrail went into administration in July.

Kiss Flights operated routes to Greece, Egypt, Turkey and the Canary Islands, and folded when Flight Options ceased trading at 5pm, the Civil Aviation Authority said. The CAA said 13,000 holidaymakers who had booked trips through the company would get home as normal and customers with flights leaving the UK before 6pm today can travel as planned. Most of the 60,000 who had booked flights with the company should receive refunds.