Airlift brings Scottish tourists back to Glasgow

Hundreds of Scottish travellers who were caught in the XL Leisure Group collapse were back in Scotland on Friday night, as part of what is being called “the most challenging” airlift that airlines have ever organized.

Two of the first flights arrived early Friday morning at Glasgow Airport carrying holidaymakers from Dalman, Turkey, after Freebird, a carrier based in Turkey, arranged to provide transport.

Later that evening XL holidaymakers stranded in Tenerife were flown back to the UK by Monarch Airlines, landing in Manchester and then transported by bus back to Scotland.

Also in Glasgow on Friday, a number of travel agencies were working with XL customers to find alternative holidays for some of the 200,000 who were holding holiday packages and flights issued by the failed travel operator.

Over 85,000 travellers were already on their breaks abroad, at destinations in Spain, Turkey and the US – where they were left without transportation back to the UK.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) vowed on Friday that all of those travellers affected would be repatriated, indicating that most of them would be able to return on their scheduled date, or on the following day.

www.glasgowairport.com