With the first half of 2026 now complete and the second underway, a number of small and mid-size airlines have not been able to survive the spike in jet fuel prices that came as a result of the war with Iran set off by the joint U.S.-Israeli strike.
Mexican holiday carrier Magnicharters, British cargo carrier European Cargo and Swiss regional airline Air Mountain are among the most recent names to either shut down operations or file for bankruptcy protection over the last few weeks.
Jetflite, a Finnish charter carrier that launched out of Helsinki in 1980, began the consultation process for shutting down operations and letting for of the 53 employees working for the airline earlier this spring.
Jetflite shuts down all charter and FBO operations: report
As first reported by Swiss aviation outlet ch-aviation, the airline is now definitively canceling all its charter flights and fixed-base operator services for the rest of 2026. The latter refers to an agreement between an airport and an airline to provide it with non-commercial aviation services such as fueling and hangar maintenance.
Jetflite is part of the wider Wihuri Aviation Group and has a fleet of an 18-seat Challenger 604, a 12-seat Challenger 650 and a Falcon 7X. Jetflite retired its single Gulfstream G150 in 2025 over too-high operational costs.
Related: Another airline files for bankruptcy protection, cancels all flights
“The negotiations concern the planned discontinuation of the above-mentioned businesses and the potential termination of employment of the associated personnel,” Jetflite said in a statement put out earlier in the year. “The decisions under consideration are driven by the prolonged unprofitable performance of these businesses.”
Consultation around a potential shutdown began on June 8 and lasted for three weeks; as of July 6, Jetflite has not published a statement on the outcome of the consultation process or the reasons for the shutdown.
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What is happening with Jetflite and Wihuri Aviation in 2026
The wider Wihuri Aviation was launched in 1901 by Finnish wholesale tycoon Hjalmar Aarnio and is not affected by the looming shutdown of its subsidiary.
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The charter flights operated out of Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL) and flew primarily to other Nordic countries as well as Russia and nations that were previously part of the Soviet Union.
It is also not immediately clear how many flights into the rest of 2026 were canceled and whether customers with disrupted travel will receive refunds from the airline.
Other airlines that filed for bankruptcy in the first half of 2026:
- Spirit Airlines: The largest airline shutdown of the year occurred when Spirit Airlines canceled all remaining flights on May 2. Although the airline had filed for Chapter 11 protection twice before, the skyrocketing price of jet fuel dealt the final blow to its operations.
- Magnicharters: The Mexican low-cost airline canceled all of its flights until May 2026 in a shutdown that left thousands stranded.
- Starflite Aviation: Houston-based Starflite Aviation had its AOC license revoked in March 2026, amid FAA claims that owners falsified pilot training records to bypass safety audits.
- AlpAvia: Slovenian charter airline AlpAvia also shut down in March 2026 over financial problems.
- H-Bird: Charter airline H-Bird was declared bankrupt by a Swedish judge after losing its operating license at the end of 2025.
Related: Another airline shut down in bankruptcy, to liquidate