Bankrupt German carrier Air Berlin (AB/BER) has announced that is ceasing operations on the 28th October 2017 effectively ending its Cardiff codeshare with Flybe.
Flybe entered into a codeshare with Air Berlin last year to provide connections from Cardiff to Germany but the airline which has been in bankruptcy protection since the 15th August.
The connections via Germany have provided a significant boost to passenger numbers at Cardiff Airport with passengers using Air Berlins wider network and membership of the Oneworld Alliance. Many of whom had booked for flights beyond he 28th October.
A Flybe spokesperson told us: “Flybe is working closely with its codeshare partner, Air Berlin, to address in the most beneficial way possible the situation for those customers whose existing bookings have been made for travel after midnight on 28th October 2017; the details of which Flybe will action once it has received official notification of the change of status.”
According to Chief Executive Officer Thomas Winkelmann this week marks a crucial phase for the future of Air Berlin’s staff, planes and airport slots, as exclusive negotiations with Lufthansa and EasyJet are set to end Thursday but warned Air Berlins 8,600 employees to prepare to find jobs as potential buyers would be unlikely to retain them, preferring to bring in their own staff.