UK airline Flybe collapses after failing to secure bailout

(FILES) In this file photo taken on November 8,2017 passengers dissembark from a Flybe aircraft after landing at Jersey Airport in St Peter, north of St Helier, on the British island of Jersey. - British regional airline Flybe has collapsed with all its flights grounded, the company said on March 5,2020, as the coronavirus epidemic takes a heavy toll on airlines around the world. - AFP

LONDON: UK airline Flybe collapsed into administration after failing to secure a last-ditch bailout from the government, leaving no other option than to ground the regional carrier serving far-flung parts of the UK.

Britain’s largest domestic airline had been teetering for months. It avoided liquidation in January, when Boris Johnson’s government came out in support of state intervention and its owners, including Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd, injected extra cash. However, prospects for a turnaround dimmed as the coronavirus outbreak swept the globe.