| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 08/10/01 |
| Author: | Page Number: 5 |
| Copyright: Other |
In the air: the cash will enable the airline to fly until October 27
Swissair resumes flights after receiving government grant
THESWISS government threw Swissair a lifeline last Wednesday to save the country’s national carrier from collapse.
A £189 million emergency grant allowed the airline to resume flying last Thursday after a cash shortfall forced management to ground all Swissair aircraft for two days.
The cash will keep the airline flying until October 27, when a restructured airline led by Swissair sister company Crossair is expected to take over a pared-down operation.
Bridge Travel-owned Swiss Travel Service said 150 holidaymakers had been flown home during the two-day crisis, which stranded passengers at airports all over the world.
Deputy managing director Alan Croft said: “The back end of the summer is a slow time for travel to Switzerland and we haven’t had any cancellations for future bookings so far. Of course this will shake people’s confidence in big name airlines, but there’s not a carrier in the world that hasn’t been affected by September 11.”
The Crossair restructure will see 2,560 job cuts, 810 outside Switzerland.