Major European airline plunges into administration – no more flights

Hundreds of employees were left facing redundancy after a budget airline announced it had collapsed into administration.

Icelandic carrier PLAY, based in Reykjavík, confirmed it had entered administration and halted all operations on September 29 last year. A notice published on the airline’s website stated at the time: “Dear passenger, Fly PLAY hf. has ceased operations, and all flights have been cancelled.”

According to Icelandic media outlet RUV, the move left approximately 400 workers facing job losses, with the firm “trying to pay staff their wages”. It remains uncertain whether the affected employees have received their full payments.

PLAY was founded in July 2019 and launched operations from its hub at Keflavík International Airport, Reykjavik, in June 2021. The airline initially served six European destinations: Alicante, Tenerife, London, Paris, Copenhagen and Berlin. PLAY also ran services between London and Reykjavík, though no seats were available for purchase beyond November 1 prior to the announcement.

The board of PLAY declared in a statement in September: “The board of Fly Play hf. has decided to terminate operations, and all of the company’s flights have been cancelled. The company will work closely with authorities and employees to implement the necessary steps for winding down operations.

“There are many reasons behind this decision. The company’s performance has long fallen short of expectations, ticket sales have been poor in recent weeks and months following negative media coverage, and internal disagreements among some employees regarding strategic changes have further strained the situation.”

Details revealed by the board referenced alterations which did not yield the necessary results. They added: “Last fall, Play introduced a new business model that initially inspired significant optimism.

“Unfortunately, it has now become clear that these changes cannot deliver the results needed to overcome the airline’s deep-seated financial troubles. In hindsight, these measures would have needed to be implemented much earlier.”