Global tour company Thomas Cook collapsed after being denied a $310 million bailout by the U.K. government, stranding more than 600,000 passengers all over the world. The 178-year-old British company has been forced into compulsory liquidation, putting around 22,000 jobs at risk worldwide. The BBC reports the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority said the tour company’s failure triggered the largest-ever peacetime repatriation in an attempt to bring 150,000 British holiday makers home. Peter Fankhauser, Thomas Cook’s chief executive, said the firm’s collapse was a “matter of profound regret.” The U.K. government chartered 45 jets to try to bring home around 16,000 passengers who were scheduled to fly back to the U.K. on Monday, briefly making it the nation’s fifth largest airline.
