Air Berlin to Discontinue Operations by October 28
Air Berlin will stop flying by October 28, the airline announced Monday.
The news came in a letter to employees signed by two top managers at the beleaguered German airline. The letter also encouraged employees to seek new positions on their own because “prospective buyers of parts of Air Berlin intend to appoint new staff in the majority of cases.”
Air Berlin was originally founded as a U.S. company based in Oregon in 1978 to operate charter flights in and out of West Berlin. After reunification, the airline was acquired by Joachim Hunold, a former German leisure airline LTU executive. It became a low-cost long-haul carrier in 2007 after acquiring LTU, and evolved into a full network carrier in the ensuing years.
Air Berlin filed for insolvency in August when its biggest shareholder and financier, Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways, discontinued support following years of losses.
The Berlin-based airline sold its 49.8% stake in Austrian carrier Niki to Etihad last December. The insolvency proceedings do not affect Niki operations.
The company is slated to complete negotiations later this week to sell some of its assets to Lufthansa and EasyJet.
(Photo: Accura Media Group)
