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Silverjet founder Lawrence Hunt has abandoned efforts to save the airline following the collapse of a rescue deal on Friday.

Hunt said he would now focus on winding up Silverjet. The 420 staff at the all-business class carrier were made redundant at the end of last week.

Silverjet collapsed into adminstration at the end of May, brought down by the high oil price and a failure to secure additional funds amid continuing losses. An unlikely rescue briefly seemed possible last week, involving the Irish arm of a Swiss investment firm. But it collapsed under the pressure of insolvency rules that meant staff had to be paid or laid off by the end of the week. 

Administrator Begbies Traynor continues to talk to parties interested in Silverjet's assets and joint adminsitrator Nigel Atkinson does not rule out a sale of the carrier as a going concern. However, he said: "Every day that passes makes it less likely." 

In a statement, Hunt said today: "We have decided to draw the line under our efforts to raise additional funding for Silverjet. The investment climate has become too cautious and the economic conditions very difficult. My focus now is to ensure Silverjet is wound up as smoothly as possible."

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