Eastern Airways goes into administration

Eastern Airways, a long-standing regional carrier in the UK, has gone into administration after making most of its 330 employees redundant last week.

The airline, which operated routes throughout the UK, Ireland, and parts of Europe, had also provided government-supported flights connecting remote communities in the far north of Scotland. Administrators said the business became unsustainable after the loss of a major contract with Dutch airline KLM, which had relied on Eastern to operate several of its European services.

According to joint administrator Jamie Miller of RSM UK Restructuring Advisory, a core group of employees has been kept on to look after the aircraft while attempts are made to preserve parts of the business. He said the administrators are open to approaches from companies interested in taking over operations or acquiring assets.

RSM explained that Eastern had been running four aircraft on behalf of KLM Cityhopper. Once that agreement ended, the airline was left with significant fixed costs and a workforce size that it could no longer support. The company had already signalled financial distress in late October, shortly after the Civil Aviation Authority confirmed that all its flights were suspended.

Founded in 1997 and based at Humberside Airport in North Lincolnshire, Eastern Airways was among the last regional airlines still operating in the UK. Its financial position weakened after the pandemic, partly due to reduced passenger demand.

Beyond its main base, the carrier also flew from airports including East Midlands, Jersey, Manchester, Newcastle, Newquay, and Southampton, as well as Esbjerg in Denmark. It also played a role in the North Sea oil and gas industry, offering flights between hubs such as Aberdeen, Humberside, Teesside, and Wick.

One of its key services was a weekday route linking Wick John O’Groats Airport with Aberdeen, considered essential for people living in the northernmost communities on the UK mainland.