Spanish airline Spanair said Friday it is ceasing operations and plans to go to court next week to seek bankruptcy protection.

The financially struggling carrier issued a statement apologizing for any inconvenience and assuring passengers that Spanair was working with the airport authority and the Spanish development ministry to minimize travel disruptions.

Spanair currently operates around 200 flights a day, including service to a dozen cities in Europe and Africa.

Spanair, which has some 2,000 employees and a 22 percent share of Spain's air travel market, has been in financial straits for several years.

The decision to shut down came after the Catalonia regional government said it would not provide any more public money to Spanair and Qatar Airlines declined to invest in the Barcelona-based carrier.

Spanair's financial problems were aggravated by its involvement in Spain's worst air disaster in 25 years: a Aug 20, 2008, crash near Madrid-Barajas International Airport that left 154 people dead.

--IANS/EFE

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