bmibaby, a subsidiary of UK-based British Midland Airways Limited (bmi), is to close its operations.
Bmi is an airline previously owned by Lufthansa, a German airline company, and recently sold to British International Airlines Group (IAG), the parent company of British Airways.
IAG will reportedly be closing the bmibaby operation due to it being unable to sell the loss-making airline. Operations are currently being controlled, with flights being reduced from early June 2012.
In a statement, the airline said, ‘As part of the review and as a preliminary measure, we have had to make changes to our summer 2012 schedule and cancel a number of routes.
We will continue to operate bmibaby flights to the majority of our summer destinations from East Midlands and Birmingham airports until Sunday, September 9, 2012.
We recognise this news may be frustrating for customers and we would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused. We will do all we can to keep you up-to-date with the latest information and make the process as smooth as possible.’
According to the statement, the company is currently in a discussion with its 470 employees to ‘to review future options for the bmibaby business’.
The interim managing director of bmi, Peter Simpson, said, ‘bmibaby has delivered high levels of operational performance and customer service, but has continued to struggle financially, losing more than £100 million in the last four years. In the consultation process, we will need to be realistic about our options.
To help stem losses as quickly as possible and as a preliminary measure, we will be making reductions to bmibaby’s flying programme from June. We sincerely apologise to all customers affected and will be providing full refunds and doing all we can with other airlines to mitigate the impact of these changes.’
