News

ACCOLADIA, the joint venture between British Airways Holidays and Thomas Cook Holidays, is to be dissolved less than 18 months after it was launched.

Thomas Cook has agreed to pay £6 million to British Airways to buy back its 50% stake. British Airways Holidays will remain with Thomas Cook until 2004, when it will revert to BA ownership.

Following the dissolution of Accoladia, Thomas Cook is to close its Crawley office, resulting in the possible loss of 59 jobs. A spokeswoman said efforts would be made to relocate them to Peterborough, but admitted there will be redundancies.

Thomas Cook chief executive Alan Stewart said: "When we formed the Accoladia business in April 2001 it made sound strategic and commercial sense for both organisations. Now that Thomas Cook is to be rolled out as a global leisure brand...it makes sense for our UK scheduled business, operating under the Thomas Cook Signature brand, to revert to our sole ownership."