The charter marketer Green Airlines has already lost an “airline partner” because the Bulgarian Alk Air withdrew the chartered Boeing 737-300. There seems to be a bad atmosphere between the two companies, with passengers being the worst.

On July 4125, 5, Alk Air returned the last charter flight for Green Airlines under flight number VBB2021. After the LZ-MVK landed in Rhodes from Rostock, it did not go to Paderborn as announced, but back to the Sofia home base. All subsequent Green Airlines charters were no longer carried out. In the meantime, some airports no longer list the connections.

So Green Airlines knew that they had a serious problem because they no longer have an operating carrier for the flights they sell. However, sales were open for a relatively long time before they were discontinued for the rest of the week under VBB flight numbers. Passengers only receive a succinct and ultra-short e-mail one day before departure that their booking has been canceled. It should be noted that this is written in English, does not contain a signature or telephone number, and certainly not any information on passenger rights.

Three completely different explanations

Alk Air stated succinctly that they will no longer fly for Green Airlines. The Bulgarian airline did not give any reasons. The company's customer service team wrote succinctly that the flights were canceled by the carrier. They offer rebooking to other airlines. However, this is only a weak “consolation”, because there are no same-day connections to Paderborn and Rostock, for example from Rhodes, that would not resemble what feels like a “European tour”.

It is also noteworthy that the Green Airlines press office presents a third version of why the flights are no longer taking place: “We started our flight offer at a very challenging time and many people are still cautious when planning their vacation. Unfortunately, this is also noticeable when booking flights. For this reason, Green Airlines decided to cancel the flights on July 6th, 7th and 8th from Paderborn-Lippstadt Airport and Rostock-Laage Airport to Heraklion, Kos and Rhodes. The reason for this is insufficient seat occupancy, which contradicts the airline's green philosophy. The passengers will be rebooked by the organizers. The flights on July 9th, 10th and 11th from Paderborn and Rostock to Palma and Heraklion will take place as via flights (PAD - RLG - PMI or HER and HER or PMI - RLG - PAD). " In addition, it should be pointed out that, contrary to the self-portrayal of “Airline”, Green Airlines is not an airline, as it has no AOC and no operating license. It is a charter marketer who charter aircraft and markets the seats for its own account.

How the obvious break between Alk Air and Green Airlines happened after just a few legs remains completely open. However, the statement made by the customer service of the charter marketer suggests that the Bulgarian airline may have withdrawn from the contract. In the industry there is a very logical reason why airlines take such a step.

Cancellation with an ultra-short email in English

The way Green Airlines deals with customers even undercuts the relevant low-cost airlines. Proactive information only comes in the form of an ultra-short e-mail without any contact details. Proposals for solutions are not made proactively and nobody else seems to have heard anything about passenger rights. These are to be handed over in the event of a cancellation or a significant delay. In the meantime, even low-cost airlines can do this by attaching or linking to the mail as a PDF as part of the information to travelers.

In view of the fact that Green Airlines' airline partners have repeatedly said goodbye, it remains to be seen how long German Airways will continue to fly for the charter marketer and whether and how long Just Us Air will operate with the Airbus A321. It will also become apparent that Green Airlines will handle reimbursement and compensation claims against passengers. Depending on when the information about the cancellation of the sold transport service was received, a claim between 250 euros and 400 euros per person and route can arise. According to EU-VO 261/2004, the height depends on the distance of the flight route.