Zoom joins the summer lineup of bankrupt airlines

The only thing worse than seeing an airline go out of business, is watching it unfold while you are at the airport waiting to get on one of their flights. That is the unfortunate situation many passengers of Canadian airline Zoom found themselves in yesterday.

Zoom took off in May 2002 and was founded by 2 brothers who wanted to introduce low cost international travel to Canada with a fleet of 5 Boeing aircraft. The airline flew various routes from Canada to the United States, The UK, France and Italy.

One of the Boeing 757's leased by Zoom was stranded in Glasgow and impounded when Zoom failed to pay the required air traffic control fee. Another 213 passengers were stuck in Halifax while volunteers attempted to find alternative ways to help them get to their final destination of Ottawa. Zoom naturally blames the loss of their airline on rising fuel costs and a general ecomonic downturn. They are they the 36th airline in the world to close this year according to a list posted on Wikipedia.

Sadly there really are no good tips on what to do when you are stuck at an airport after your airline goes bankrupt. All I can suggest is that you have the phone numbers for other airlines and hotel chains programmed in your phone, the quicker you get in touch with them for an alternative flight, or for a room where you can spend the night, the greater your chances are of getting home before anyone else. It is in times like this that you'll also learn to appreciate the importance of paying for your tickets by credit card, which might help you get your money back. Don't depend on the airline to provide you with information when things go sour, most of their staff will be the first to leave the building once they hear their employer is going under.

Filed under: Airlines, Airports, News