By Simon Evans; Mark Leftly After tour operator goes into administration leaving 90,000 stranded, details emerge of attempts to secure a deal with two failing airlines Banks scuppered a proposed three-way airlines tie-up that could have salvaged the collapsed XL Leisure last month, while speculation is mounting that the failed group might already have a new owner.

By LIAM CREEDON THE collapse of XL is the latest blow to the UK air travel industry which has endured a torrid summer with a number of companies closing down.

By Michael Savage Hundreds of passengers stranded in airports from Gatwick to San Diego were trying to find a way home yesterday after the collapse of the transatlantic budget airline Zoom.

By Sarah Arnott British Airways is buying a privately owned French airline, L'Avion, for 54m as part of its plans to boost the number of flights between France and the United States following the liberalisation of transatlantic air travel.

By Ritson, Mark They say that things come in threes. We should, therefore, not be surprised that Silverjet has now followed rival airlines Eos and MAXjet into financial difficulties. Things aren't looking good for the British business-class airline.