The stretch of bad times for smaller regional airlines around the world continues.

In the last month, British regional carriers Eastern Airways and Blue Islands of the Channel Islands both canceled all their flights to England and Scotland in sudden shutdowns that left thousands of travelers stranded and competitors having to offer rescue fares.

Earlier in the fall, Scandinavian airlines Play and Braathens Aviation both also shut down operations in two high-profile bankruptcies that left even more travelers stranded in dozens of popular holiday destinations across Europe.

Other regional and charter names forced to close down in 2025 include Ravn Alaska, Air Belgium, and Florida-based charter airline Verijet. In most of these cases, the reasons ultimately came down to high costs of operations — aviation is a particularly expensive industry — coupled with an inability to bring in the traffic necessary to keep up with competitors.

Why SmartLynx Latvia is shutting down: a short history

As first reported by several aviation industry watchdogs including AviTrader, the latest airline to shut down is SmartLynx Latvia. Founded in 1993, the Baltic branch of the wider SmartLynx umbrella did not operate direct passenger flights, but instead provided charter and Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance, and Insurance (ACMI) services to other airlines.

ACMI is a type of aircraft leasing service often called a “wet lease” and used by companies that, for various reasons, need a plane for shorter periods of time.

For the last three decades, SmartLynx operated both charter and cargo flights from the Baltics and to countries across Europe, Asia, and North America.

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“Today, we are sharing news that is difficult for all of us at SmartLynx Airlines,” the airline said in a Nov. 25 statement.

“As of today, we will be ceasing our commercial operations. This decision comes after a thorough assessment of our situation and long-term outlook, and it was not taken lightly. We started as a small Latvian airline with big dreams, and over 33 years grew into an international family known for resilience, adaptability, and a spirit that never backed down.”

SmartLynx Latvia was founded in 1993 as a charter and ACMI airline.

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SmartLynx staff say they are stranded in Vietnam, have not received paychecks

As reported by Airline Routes & Grand Services, hundreds of staff who worked for SmartLynx are now left abruptly unemployed and in some cases, stranded in different parts of the world. Many are also claiming not to have received their last paycheck from the airline.

Other airline bankruptcies 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.
  • Corporate Air: Filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy (restructuring) in September 2025 as part of a planned sale.
  • Verijet: Filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in October 2025, canceled all flights, and ceased operations.
  • Kachina Air, Inc.: Filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on October 24, 2025.

The total debt recorded by SmartLynx at the time of filing for bankruptcy includes €240 million ($277 million USD) in liabilities and €500,000 ($577 million USD) in unpaid taxes to the Latvian governments.

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Representatives of the airline could not be immediately reached for comment on what it would be doing to return stranded staff back to Latvia.

In one case, two crew members say they were left with no contact in Vietnam and bought their own plane tickets back.

Related: Airline cancels all domestic flights after one of its planes hit by gunfire