5 airlines plummet into administration or liquidation - all flights cancelled

Five airlines have now plummeted into administration or liquidation in 2026 so far, with every single one of their flights cancelled as a result.

This week, European Cargo Limited became the latest casualty of the turbulence in the travel sector, with the Bournemouth-based UK carrier collapsing into administration with 178 jobs being lost.

A spokesman for administrators Teneo Financial said: "The appointment follows a period of significant financial pressure on the business, driven by reduced flying activity and working capital and fuel cost pressures. The company has ceased trading and, regrettably, redundancies are being made."

It comes after US airline Spirit Airlines announced an immediate shutdown, with all flights cancelled, after it failed to secure a rescue deal from the US Government in May.

The budget US airline announced on its website that it has begun a "wind down" of operations "effective immediately" including cancelling flights across the US.

Spirit had been recovering from its second bankruptcy filing before the war in Iran, but the recent spike in jet fuel prices pushed it over the edge.

Before that, another UK-based service, Ecojet, entered administration in February. The UK-based EV-powered airline was launched in 2023, promising to be the world’s first electric carrier.

Its fleet was made up of planes retrofitted with hydrogen-powered electric engines. EcoJet had been due to start flying in 2024 with an Edinburgh to Southampton route, and had plans to expand to mainland Europe with long-haul flights.

But the company has entered voluntary liquidation, with Opus Restructuring appointed as liquidators in February. Despite the headwinds, former Ecotricity founder Dale Vince OBE, who launched the firm, has vowed to continue to attempt to electrify air travel.

Royal Air Philippines is a budget airline which began operations in 2018, with flights across Asian destinations including China, Cambodia and South Korea.

The company began life as a charter airline in 2002 and then expanded to offer commercial flights in 2018, with new Airbus A319 and A320 jets.

But the firm has since collapsed into administration, with roughly 4,000 flights cancelled between January and March 2026. The airline has since been working to give refunds to affected passengers.

A message posted on its site before it went offline said: “We are working on providing refunds and hope to resume flights at an unspecified date in the future.

"Thank you for your patience and understanding. We eagerly anticipate welcoming you aboard soon.”

Dove Airlines, based in Kolkata in India, entered voluntary liquidation in January.

The operator had not flown services since 2022, when creditors seized its last remaining Cessna Citation jet.

The company wrestled with insolvency proceedings for several years while attempting to attract new investment, but when efforts failed, the airline chose to enter voluntary liquidation under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India.

At the same time, the escalating price of oil due to the Iran crisis has put greater pressure on remaining airlines, as jet fuel has been one of the most impacted.

On April 17, Air Canada announced it would suspend services to New York’s JFK International Airport over the summer as the war in Iran creates jet fuel shortages that have sent prices soaring.

Canada’s flag carrier said that flights from Toronto and Montreal to JFK would cease on June 1 and resume on October 25.

Services to the New York metropolitan area’s two other airports — LaGuardia and Newark — will continue.

Air Canada said it will reach out to customers who are affected by the suspension with alternative travel options.

“As jet fuel prices have doubled since the start of the Iran conflict and some lower profitability routes and flights are no longer economic, we are making schedule adjustments accordingly,” a spokesman for the Montreal-based carrier said.

Fuel and labour costs are typically the largest annual expenses for airlines.

Delta Air said in April that the tab for higher fuel would add $2bn to its second-quarter costs. Airlines including JetBlue and United Airlines are raising bag fees to offset skyrocketing fuel costs while others scale back services.

In an exclusive Associated Press interview, International Energy Agency director Fatih Birol said Europe has “maybe six weeks” of remaining jet fuel supplies and said the global economy faces its “largest energy crisis”.

Savanthi Syth, an airlines analyst at investment bank Raymond James, confirmed spiralling jet fuel costs had been "the final nail in the coffin" for Spirit.

She told the BBC:"If it wasn't for the fuel scenario, they would have been OK through the summer, beyond the summer I would have said it was still precarious."