CAA steps in after second Turkey specialist ceases trading

Around 1,200 passengers are being assisted by the Civil Aviation Authority following the collapse on Friday of Turkey specialist Anatolian Sky.

The CAA said the West Midlands-based company, which also traded as World Sky Holidays, had approximately 150 people abroad at the time of its collapse.

It also had 460 forward bookings, covering about 1,020 people, said the CAA.

Earlier this year, Anatolian Sky managing director Akin Koc had expressed his devastation when fellow Turkey specialist Jewel in the Crown Holidays ceased trading.

At that time, he urged the trade to do all it could to support its partners in the tourist industry in Turkey and said he hoped the impact of ‘current events will be relatively short-lived’.

His Solihull company was a member of the Association of Independent Tour Operators.

Alongside holidays to Turkey it specialised in Northern Cyprus and had recently expanded into other destinations, including Croatia, Morocco, Slovenia, Montenegro, the Greek islands, Madeira, Egypt and Jordan.

It also sold traditional gulet cruises in Turkey and Greece, plus Adriatic and Nile cruises.

The failure comes just days after a terror attack at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport which killed at least 42 people and injured more than 230.

In a statement on its website, Anatolian Sky said it had taken the decision to cease trading on Friday to avoid further disruption and uncertainty for clients.

It said: "We have served our clients and agents with passion and enthusiasm for the past 26 years.  We loved what we were doing and more than anything we loved the wonderful country of Turkey and all the other countries and products we offered. 

"We have been under pressure since the regional political problems started in the past few years and intensified last year  and this year. Turkey has been under attack by regional terrorism and by global powers.  Every new attack has had a devastating effect on the company. We tried to divert the business to some new destinations to make up for the lost business from Turkey, but it was not enough to replace it. It has become impossible to cope and sustain the business particularly through recent attacks. "

The CAA said all customers already abroad should have scheduled airline tickets which remain valid and should be able to return home as planned.

It has been in contact with accommodation and airport transfer providers to make sure there are no changes to the arrangements booked through the company, it said.

Further advice on accommodation arrangements has been published on the CAA website.

Customers who have paid in full for packages booked with the company and have scheduled airline tickets have two options: travel as planned; or seek a refund – through their card provider if purchased with a credit card, or through ATOL if another payment method was used.

However, customers are being advised that they will need to rearrange and pay for accommodation and transfers to and from the airport in resort booked through the company. Costs for making these arrangements can be claimed back and more information on this is~available on the CAA website.

Andy Cohen, head of ATOL, said: "The collapse of World Sky Travel is a timely reminder of why holidaymakers should make sure their holiday is ATOL protected and that they receive an ATOL certificate, as soon as they’ve booked their trips.

"As a result of the ATOL scheme, customers of this company have the peace of mind they will be able to complete their holidays and return home as planned if already abroad, or get a full refund if yet to travel."~

AITO chairman Derek Moore expressed sorrow at the loss of Anatolian.

"All of us at AITO are very sorry to learn that Anatolian sky has ceased trading. Akin and his team have been strong and much-valued supporters of AITO and AITO Specialist Travel agents over many years, and it is tough to see a decent business come to an end," he said.

"Anatolian Sky, like many specialist operators, saw some years ago the need to diversify in order to strengthen the business and so wisely introduced programmes into new destinations such as Croatia and Greece. But Akin was always loyal to the country closest to his heart and continued to try to support Turkey despite recent events making Turkey such a difficult destination to market at the moment; it is this which has brought his company down.

"It is sad that the terrorism that blights the lives of so many in Turkey has now brought down one of the country’s most fervent ambassadors."