A SCOTTISH airline has put a stop to its operations after the company collapsed into liquidation.
The travel firm was launched in Edinburgh back in 2023 by entrepreneur Dale Vince.
It was hailed as “the world’s first electric airline”.
But now, provisional liquidators have been appointed at EcoJet Airlines after a reported bid to raise £20million, The Herald reports.
Mr Vince, who is also the founder of green energy firm Ecotricity, said he has “paused investment into EcoJet”.
He said: “We remain committed to electrifying all forms of transport – aviation is the last frontier and the hardest.
“It’s taking longer than we hoped, to get the technology and regulatory pieces of the puzzle in alignment, and so we’re pausing work at this time.”
Mr Vince added: “This is a vital frontier in the move to net zero, green living, whatever you choose to call it – and it’s absolutely doable.
“It’s a matter of when not if.”
A petition was presented to Edinburgh Sheriff Court for EcoJet Airlines to be wound up and liquidators to be appointed.
Paul Dounis and Mark Harper, of Opus Restructuring were appointed provisional liquidators.
Opus said the move followed a “voluntary liquidation initiated by the company’s board”.
It stated: “EcoJet was a start-up business and has no material assets.
“The members have elected to fund the liquidation process to ensure that the company’s employees receive their full statutory entitlements.”
At the time of its launch three years ago, Ecotricity dubbed the airline an “aviation revolution by making net-zero, emission-free air travel possible for the first time.”
Its fleet was set to be made up of repurposed planes retrofitted with hydrogen-electric powertrains.
Once the aircrafts had been converted, they would operate with the same power output as before, but with a 100 percent reduction in CO2 emissions.
Ecotricity claimed that using old planes rather than building new models would save 90,000 tonnes of carbon per year.
The company planned an Edinburgh to Southampton route.
Mainland Europe and long-haul flights were to be decided in the future.
Credits: Scottish Airlines
