We Have an Official Date for the End of Air Berlin
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Two weeks ago, we learned that October 15 is the last day of operations for Air Berlin long-haul flights. Now, we have the date of the final flights of Air Berlin.
According to a statement released Monday, Air Berlin executives note that the airline’s flights will no longer be operated after October 28. This will mark the end of operations for what was Germany’s second largest airline.
Also in the letter, Air Berlin’s 8,600 employees were encouraged to start looking for other jobs. While the airline is reportedly actively trying to place its employees elsewhere, the letter notes “we strongly encourage you to actively take a look at the job market yourselves.” It goes on to note that a nearby airline is on a hiring spree: “the Lufthansa group alone has already advertised 1,000 jobs with its subsidiary Eurowings.”
Two airlines remain in negotiations for parts of the airline with a deadline upcoming this Thursday. But, one thing is for sure: neither party wants to take over all of Air Berlin.
According to Air Berlin administrators, Lufthansa wants to take over the operations of approximately 81 Air Berlin aircraft, including the takeoff and landing slots. Meanwhile, EasyJet may still be interested in the operations of 27-30 Air Berlin aircraft.
However, any deal that’s stuck from these negotiations will have to undergo an approvals process with the European Union regulators. This process reportedly could last “several weeks or months.”
Here’s a timeline of the fall of Air Berlin:
- August 15: Air Berlin enters insolvency proceedings
- August 25: Air Berlin’s TopBonus mileage program enters bankrupcy
- September 15: Deadline to bid for the airline or its assets
- September 25: First US routes ended
- October 1: Long-haul flights from Berlin cut
- October 15: All long-haul flights end
- October 28: Final day of operations
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