Five airlines have suffered financial difficulty, leaving holidaymakers facing cancelled holidays and flights. The vast majority of carriers used by British travellers – including British Airways, easyJet, Jet2, Ryanair, Virgin Atlantic and Wizz Air – remain financially stable.

However, some airlines have been slashing services while others have pushed up ticket prices to manage rising costs. Meanwhile, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) has cautioned that Europe could exhaust its jet fuel supplies in as little as six weeks.

The most recent casualty is Spirit Airlines, which is ceasing operations after failing to secure a $500m (£368m) rescue package from the Trump administration.

The low-cost carrier had been negotiating with the US government regarding a bailout that would have prevented its closure.

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Ascend Airways – which operates flights in the UK – has gone into liquidation.

Ascend Airways provides aircraft for other airline operators, with previous clients including Oman Air, Air Sierra Leone and Tui Airways.

An insider told The Sun: "It's gone bust today, we got the news this afternoon. We've all been given the letters that it's all going into liquidation.

"It's to do with the economy, we couldn't get contracts, the UK is a lot more expensive than Europe," the insider said. "The fuel situation had a massive effect on it as well."

Source: Daily Express :: World Feed