Since they began flights in June 2016, Cobalt had been operating regular charter flights from Larnaca in Cyprus to Dublin several times a week with both Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft.
Local media said Cobalt had failed to reach a deal with a potential new investor.
The airline’s statement said future flights would not operate due to “indefinite suspension of Cobalt’s operations”, and advised passengers not to go to the airport.
They should contact their credit card provider or travel agent instead, it added.
Cypriot Transport Minister Vassiliki Anastassiadou said the government would pay for tickets to help travellers get back to where they started from, but stressed it would only cover return tickets.
She said telephone numbers would be announced soon to help passengers stranded either in Cyprus or overseas.
The fate of Cobalt’s 200 staff is unclear.
Last year, Cobalt said it had carried 740,000 passengers in its first 16 months of operation. By contrast, Europe’s biggest airline Lufthansa carried about 130 million people last year.
Before 2016, short-haul flights out of Cyprus were dominated by state-controlled Cyprus Airways. But it collapsed, which left room for the new operator.
Danish budget carrier Primera Air ceased trading earlier this month after 14 years of operation.
Cobalt Air Statement to Passengers:
Cobalt regrets to announce that it will be cancelling all Flights as of 23:50pm on October 17, 2018 due to indefinite suspension of Cobalt’s operations. As a result, future flights or services provided by Cobalt will be cancelled and will no longer operate.
Passengers who have un-flown tickets are instructed not to go to Larnaca Airport or any departure airport tomorrow, 18 October 2018 as no Cobalt flights will operate and no Cobalt staff will be present.
For refunds, please contact your credit card provider or Travel Agent.
We sincerely apologise once again and would like to thank our very loyal customers for their support over the last two years of Cobalt operations.
