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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Travel
Julie Delahaye

Thomas Cook passengers who only booked flights will be brought home too

Thomas Cook's collapse has seen thousands of British holidaymakers' plans thrown into chaos, as flights and holidays from the firm have been cancelled.

The travel giant's fall has also seen the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) launch the biggest peacetime repatriation scheme, as hundreds of thousands of Brits are being brought home.

For passengers who booked flights only, there has been some uncertainty as to whether they too are included in the scheme, or whether this was for customers who booked package holidays only.

However the good news is that if you booked Thomas Cook flights only and are abroad, you will be able to use one of the CAA's repatriation flights.

The Department for Transport confirmed on its Twitter page: "For flights back to the UK, it doesn’t matter whether customers are #ATOL protected or not. All #ThomasCook passengers due to return to the UK within the next 2 weeks will be brought home. For more information visit: http://thomascook.caa.co.uk ."

Thomas Cook was founded in 1841 and pioneered the package holiday (Reuters)

The scheme has already kicked off, and will be operating over the next two weeks until the 6th October 2019.

A number of airlines are taking part including British Airways, easyJet and Virgin Atlantic - you can take a look at the list here as well as advice on how to get in touch including the helplines to call.

The flights are only for those who are currently abroad; if you make alternative travel arrangements to fly out, you won't be able to use the scheme to get a flight home.

It's also worth noting that if you are currently abroad and due to return to the UK on or after the 6th October, you'll need to make your own arrangements unless you are ATOL protected.

The CAA has also said that for a small number of locations passengers will need to book their own return flights, but passengers can keep receipts in order to be refunded for the costs.

We've also put together a guide on what you need to know if you booked flights and not a package holiday, including how you could get your money back.

The CAA also has a dedicated Thomas Cook page with all of the information for affected passengers and where you can book the repatriation flights.

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