LONDON: British travel group Thomas Cook on Monday declared bankruptcy after failing to reach a last-ditch rescue deal, triggering the UK’s biggest repatriation since World War II to bring back tens of thousands of stranded passengers.
Thomas Cook logos are pictured on the tailfins of the company's passenger aircraft parked on tarmac at Manchester Airport in Manchester, northern England on September 23, 2019, after the company collapsed into bankruptcy. British travel firm Thomas Cook collapsed into bankruptcy on Monday, leaving some 600,000 holidaymakers stranded and sparking the UK's biggest repatriation since World War II. The 178-year-old operator, which had struggled against fierce online competition for some time and which had blamed Brexit uncertainty for a recent drop in bookings, was desperately seeking £200 million ($250 million, 227 million euros) from private investors to avert collapse. / AFP / Oli SCARFF