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“Mayhem” for John and Julie Johnson.
Hols ‘mayhem’ as XL goes bust
17/ 9/2008
SCORES of Macclesfield holidaymakers have watched their dreams of sunshine and relaxation plummet from the sky after their travel agent went bust.
Holiday firm XL was forced to ground 21 planes on Friday (September 12), leaving 90,000 people abroad, and tens of thousands more without flights to sunnier climes.
The Civil Aviation Authority and other travel agents stepped in to help the situation, but Macclesfield residents affected by XL’s closure told of the "mayhem", "disappointment" – and hefty cost.
John Johnson, 65, caretaker at the town’s indoor market, paid an extra £700 to keep his holiday plans on track, after his flight to Fuerteventura was cancelled.
The dad-of-four booked with Broadway Travel, but after the collapse of XL, was left with little choice but to rebook his entire jaunt with another travel agent.
He said: "It’s been mayhem. A real trauma. My wife Julie booked three weeks off work so that we could go on holiday, and my daughter had also taken time off to look after the house. When the flight out there was cancelled, they couldn’t just unbook their holiday time. So we had to go to Thomas Cook and book again. Broadway have been great. I’ve no problem with them. It’s XL who are the problem. They dropped the bombshell and cancelled the flights."
John and Julie, 50, have already received the accommodation money back from Broadway Travel. But, even after he gets flight money back from XL, he will be £700 out of pocket because the cost of rebooking at the last minute was higher.
In Bollington, events organiser Carl Howe was left high and dry with his family after flights to Turkey were cancelled.
Carl, director of Media 1 Productions, regularly flies all over the world as part of his work, but when it came to his own holiday, ended up driving to Scotland after his flights to Dalaman were grounded.
He said: "We’ve all really been looking forward to this holiday and we couldn’t believe it when we heard the news this morning. It’s really disappointing. With all the travelling that I have to do as part of my job, it is so frustrating that the only time I am affected by something like this is for a family holiday."
Phil Wyatt, XL chairman, said: "We’ve made every effort, myself and my fellow directors, to find new funding for the business – and it’s a very sad day for me personally. I am totally devastated."
The news of XL’s failure comes the same week that Macclesfield-based Seguro Travel also went bust. The Lowe Street firm, which offered flights on the internet, left more than 2,500 people stranded abroad, the CAA website confirmed.
In a statement released on the Seguro website, before it was taken offline, directors Rachel Elliott and Richard Burke said: "Futura’s collapse was totally unexpected as an airline with over 30 planes, having a good reputation and being one of Spain’s respected airlines. After ten years flying from Glasgow Prestwick Airport and great support from travel agents and clients, we offer our sincere apologies and are very sad to have had to make this decision, but we were left with no alternative."
Most recent 2 of 4 user comments
19/09/2008 at 13:20
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22/09/2008 at 04:19