Spanair’s closure was surprise to many

SPANAIR’S closure may have come as much as a surprise to them as to their passengers.

In the weeks leading up to the closure, their business continued as usual.

Employees had attended a course in Palma de Mallorca. Various pilots had also recently gone for training in the USA.

Two days before the closure the airline announced two new routes from Barcelona to Moscow and Beirut this summer. Customers were also able to book flights right up until 6pm on Friday.

“I went online to book a flight around 4.30pm and there was no indication that they airline would be closing in a few hours,” Michelle Burgos from Palma de Mallorca told EWN.

“I have now been told that we must buy flights with a different airline and claim the money we paid to Spanair back.” “I think it is disgraceful that they do this,” she said.

“Now of course they have all the money of people who bought tickets sitting in their bank account until it is claimed back, which could take a while.”

Around the country, Spanair employees had difficulty attending to complaints over the weekend, when the Catalan company’s offices at airports remained open to attend to customers.

“We have not been given any information and have no idea what happened,” one of them working at Barajas airport in Madrid told Spanish newspaper Publico.

“Those three days were the hardest I have ever faced working for the company.” By Monday the company had received more than 2,000 complaints.

Meanwhile, Spanair employees will receive part of their salary for January; €1,000 each, according to the Human Resources Department, who assured that “the company is working towards paying the rest as soon as possible.”

Photo credit: Alaskan Dude
By Nicole Hallett