A national airline cancels all flights for third day in a row, no bankruptcy

In the final months of 2025, a number of European airlines have been forced to shut down operations after running out of funds.

Regional British carriers Eastern Airways and Blue Islands both canceled all their flights within a few weeks of each other in a situation that left many travelers stranded and local competitors having to offer rescue fares.

A similar situation played out when Reykjavik-based low-cost airline Play Airlines canceled all flights and shut down in bankruptcy at the end of September. Based out of Sweden's Malmö and often booked by Scandinavian tourists for flights to popular vacation destinations, Braathens Aviation suffered a similar fate in the same month.

In each case, airlines ran into similar problems around staying competitive enough to make up for the high costs of aviation.

Air Albania has not operated flights since December 7

Over in the small Balkan nation of Albania, the future of its flag carrier is now also looking increasingly uncertain as local media report that Air Albania has not operated any flights since Dec. 7. FlightAware data also shows that routes that were scheduled for Milan and Istanbul out of Tirana International Airport (TIA) have not run this week.

"Travel agencies told Monitor that the airline has not operated any flights since Saturday," local Alfapress reports. "Passengers who had intercontinental transit trips via Istanbul were directed via Pristina or Podgorica Airports."

Related: Another airline set to shut down and cancel all flights over the next day

Founded in 2018 after the Albanian government revoked the license from Albanian Airlines, Air Albania has been the Balkan country's flag carrier for the last seven years.

Financed partially by Turkish Airlines, Air Albania was left suddenly struggling to find a new investor after the latter airline giant announced plans to sell its 49% stake in the carrier last November.

While Türkiye's flag carrier did not elaborate on the reasons for the Air Albania sale, it finalized plans to spend €300 million on a minority stake in the more widely-known Spanish low-cost airline Air Europa a few weeks earlier.

Play, Braathens and some of the other European airlines that shut down in 2025

Air Albania could not be reached for comment on the situation or the status of its flights in the coming days. The airline has not formally filed for bankruptcy but some travelers with booked flights reported receiving messages about canceled flights and not being able to reach the airline for information.

"Unfortunately, the worst happened and the flight was canceled," one local traveler wrote on social media platform Reddit. "I was scheduled to fly to Thailand on December 3 with a layover in Istanbul via Air Albania and Turkish Airlines, and about an hour before the flight, I received an email from Air Albania that the flight was canceled. Without any further explanation. Worried, I saw that the Air Albania offices at the airport were closed."

These airlines filed for bankruptcy in 2025:

• Spirit Airlines (Spirit Aviation Holdings, Inc.): Filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the second time on August 29, 2025.
• Ravn Alaska: Ceased operations in August 2025 after earlier Chapter 11 proceedings; shut down flights and folded into other operations like New Pacific.
• Corporate Air: Filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy (restructuring) in September 2025 as part of a planned sale.
• Play Airlines: The Reykjavik-based airline shut down operations and entered involuntary bankruptcy in September 2025.
• Braathens Airlines: Forced to file for bankruptcy and canceled all flights in September 2025.

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"Travel agencies said that until Saturday they could expect tickets through Turkish Airlines (for transit trips), while tickets from Tirana to Istanbul were expected by Air Albania itself," Alfapress reports further. "From Saturday, when Air Albania flights were stopped, agencies could no longer expect tickets with Turkish."

Related: 90-year-old airport to close down forever amid low traveler numbers