With just a week left in 2025, the string of small and mid-sized airlines having to file for bankruptcy is not yet over.
Throughout the fall, Icelandic airline Play and Swedish airline Braathens Aviation both shut down operations in bankruptcy within a few weeks of each other, while flag carrier Air Albania has also not run any flights since the start of December after main investor Turkish Airlines announced plans to sell its 49% stake.
In the United Kingdom, regional carriers Eastern Airways of the East Midlands and Guernsey-based Blue Islands both also fell in abrupt insolvencies that left thousands of travelers stranded and competitors having to offer rescue fares.
Havana Air latest U.S. airline to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Flying out of Miami International Airport since 2007, Havana Air has become the latest airline in the U.S. to file for Chapter 11 protection.
As first reported by Law360 , the airline registered as Viajehoy LLC told the bankruptcy judge in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware that its financial struggles came after the Trump administration enacted a travel ban on citizens of Cuba, along with 18 other countries, earlier this year. (President Trump ended up expanding it to 19 additional countries at the start of December.)
Related: The world fires back on Trump's new travel ban
While not included in the list of countries whose citizens are completely banned from entering the U.S., Cuban citizens now face restrictions on applying for all student and business visas.
According to Havana Air, Cuban citizens and members of the diaspora traveling between the country and Miami made up the biggest bulk of its customers on its routes to three airports in Havana, Holguín, and Santa Clara.
Some passengers also chose to boycott Havana Air over the fact that its partner Global Crossing Airlines continued to fulfill a governmental contract to run chartered deportation flights for U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement ( ICE ) as part of the administration's current crackdown on undocumented migrants, Columbia Spectator reported.
"Until recently, the business had been very successful": Havana Air
"Until recently, the business had been very successful, chartering about 30 flights a week and generating revenues of $3 million to $4 million a month," Kevin G. Collins, the Bayard PA attorney representing Havana Air in the bankruptcy, told the court. "However, recent events have had a detrimental impact on the company, including its business and its revenues."
These airlines filed for bankruptcy in 2025:
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Spirit Airlines (Spirit Aviation Holdings, Inc.): Filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the second time on August 29,2025.
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Ravn Alaska: Ceased operations in August 2025 after earlier Chapter 11 proceedings; shut down flights and folded into other operations such as New Pacific.
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Corporate Air: Filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy (restructuring) in September 2025 as part of a planned sale, according to Bondoro .
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Play Airlines: The Reykjavik-based airline shut down operations and entered involuntary bankruptcy in September 2025.
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Braathens Airlines:Forced to file for bankruptcy and canceled all flights in September 2025.
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Havana Air also reported an average revenue drop of $700,000 per month as well as total debts of $5.6 million as it brought down the total number of flights it runs per week to just four. This debt includes unpaid taxes, money owed to vendors and loans and interest to various creditors.
The airline was first launched at a time when then-President Barack Obama was moving toward opening up relations between the U.S. and Cuba and airlines had been expecting a boon in travel to the country.
These efforts, which former President Joseph Biden also tried to cement in the last weeks of his time in the White House, were also subsequently struck down by the Trump administration.
Related: Airline cancels all flights and travelers stranded, no bankruptcy
This story was originally published by TheStreet on Dec 24, 2025, where it first appeared in the Travel section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
