Airlines that stopped flying in 2025 (updated as of 20/7/25)
A very busy first half of the year had prevented me, until now, to compile the traditional yearly list of airlines that have stopped flying. But, I thought, having passed the equator of this year 2025, it was about time to look into it!
Again, the usual caveats apply: this is a list that is prepared and updated manually (in great part with the help and support of quite a few of you that send me tips and comments!), so I may have missed some airline bankruptcies, suspensions, etc.
There also some cases that are a bit in a grey area, such as airline rebrandings, mergers and the like. In any case, will do my best to list here the airlines that ceased operations in 2025.
You can also check the lists of airlines which stopped flying in 2024, 2023, 2022…and so on….
Wizz Air Abu Dhabi
This one was quite of unexpected, since we are regularly seeing carriers ramping up operations in the Middle East. Wizz Air announced, suddenly, in mid-July, that it was closing down its Abu Dhabi subsidiary on September 1, 2025. Wizz Air attributed the decision to a difficult operational environment, with heat and sand complicating the achievement of the desired turnaround times, as well as regulatory decisions hampering its expansion and an uncertain geopolitical situation which has led to repeated airspace closures and operational disruption.
So Wizz Air is going to focus on Europe from now on. Just in case, Air Arabia has already announced it is expanding its Abu Dhabi base.
Silver Airways (USA)
This was a rare instance of a US airline operating turboprops. Silver Airways had actually been on notice for quite some time, as its financial issues had been known for quite some time and its fleet had been greatly reduced lately. Before shutting down in June 2025, Silver Airways operated a short haul network centered in Florida.
Air Belgium (it’s complicated…)
This is one of those cases which I am not sure whether should be included here or not. Air Belgium had already given up on its scheduled passenger flight business and had been focusing since 2023 on the ACMI and cargo business. But it appears this was not enough and the airline filed for bankruptcy in September 2024. The business was subsequently acquired by French logistics group CMA CGM, which has pledged to keep the brand and part of the airline’s activity. So, it technically still exists, although, very little is left of the original project.
