 US airlines were badly hit by high fuel prices in 2005 |
The budget US airline Independence Air has announced that it is shutting down this Thursday, just 19 months after it was launched. The airline had filed for bankruptcy protection in November and parent company FLYi had been looking for a major investor or buyer.
Independence Air was formerly known as Atlantic Coast Airlines, a regional carrier for United Express.
It has 2,700 employees and operates 200 daily flights to 37 destinations.
With a hub at Washington Dulles International Airport, Independence Air competed against other discount airlines JetBlue, AirTran and Ted.
The airline is seeking bankruptcy court approval to automatically refund customers with reservations for flights scheduled to depart after its shutdown date of 5 January.
US airlines in general have been suffering from the high fuel costs that were seen throughout 2005.
The difficult conditions have led two of the largest US airlines, Delta and Northwest, to recently seek bankruptcy protection.
One-Minute World News 
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