From Florida to the Bahamas and various Caribbean islands, travelers left behind in the closure of Silver Airways began the process of seeking refunds for flights that had not been filmed, but blind employees whose livelihoods were suddenly cut off, asking US Bankruptcy Court judges to help them.
The moment the Hollywood-based regional airline closed its final flight at Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport late last Tuesday, airline officials immediately informed that travelers booked for future flights could receive a refund through their credit card company.
Nick Ewen, senior editor-in-chief of online travel site The Points Guy, admitted. But for customers who are left behind somewhere, there are those who are facing significant complications, who are facing extended stays and alternative flights.
Vivian Premook, a Fort Lauderdale resident who visits Harbour Island in the Bahamas, said Friday that she, her husband and two children flew silver to their holiday destination on June 5th.
“I received an email saying, ‘Your flight has been cancelled,'” she told the Sun Sentinel on Friday. “There was no explanation.”
Airline Shifts – and Planning
Currently, Permock and The Children are flying American Eagle from Northern El Cera to Miami International Airport on Monday. Her husband is back on a six-hour boat in South Florida.
“I had another friend who was departing on Wednesday and their flight was cancelled,” Premik said. “They had to book a hotel and then jump out to Americans.”
She said her family could be with friends and eliminate the need for a hotel. Still, she leaves Monday, leaving a day later than expected, and misses a day at work.
“It’s obviously inconvenient,” she said. “We were fortunate enough to afford an extra amount. This is an expensive trip. When we were at the airport (Fort Lauderdale), no one seemed to think this was coming.”
Premock said she is following the process of collecting family money for a return silver flight that was cancelled through a credit card company.
Carline Jean / South Florida Sun Sentinel
Silver Airways, a South Florida-area carrier that was closed last week in Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, is firing fire from angry employees who claimed management had betrayed them. (Carline Jean/South Florida Sun Sentinel file)
Point Guy Ewen said that was the way.
“If you book a future flight in Silver and ideally used a credit card, the right way is to contact your credit card company and apply for a chargeback or dispute claim,” he said. Customers should point out that the flight has been cancelled as the airline has stopped operating.
“Credit card companies will immediately offer temporary credit,” he said.
He said he was the same as those who ordered retail products online just to discover they were damaged during delivery.
High success rate
“The chances of this being successful are very high,” Ewen said. “They can’t provide that service and you have the right to get your money back.”
But for passengers who remained in one of the island’s enclaves?
“Unfortunately, there are not many requests that they can pursue right now,” he said. It’s not harmful to ask hotel management, but getting accommodations at an extended hotel would be difficult.
In the meantime, customers can pursue standard refund routes for cancelled return flights. The credit card company said, “We should be able to start the same process for the return part of the flight.”
While visionary people who buy travel insurance protections may be trying to get a refund, many insurance companies don’t offer payments in the event of bankruptcy or default, Ewen said. The company, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on December 30 last year, said it was forced to close after signing the acquisition agreement after a future buyer chose not to operate the carrier.
Passengers on JetBlue Airways or United Airlines may have difficulty returning home as both have code sharing arrangements with Silver, flying passengers to their final island destinations. Few carriers flew to where Silver offered them.
“I can’t think of a silver destination connected to a United or JetBlue itinerary where I can offer exchange services,” Ewen said.
However, JetBlue told Point Guy that the airline “works to support people with codeshare and interline itineraries by offering alternative travel plans or refunds.”
Like most others, JetBlue said they had not received advance notice that Silver was closed.
Over the top Longshot resort for passengers is to file a claim with the US Bankruptcy Court, but in the case of Silver, the financial company that filed what is known as a credit bid for the airline’s base assets does not provide compensation for claims arising after the airline has filed in Chapter 11.
Under the revised agreement released Wednesday, Argentum Acquisition Co., an affiliate of West Palm Beach and Connecticut Wexford Capital, will acquire silver without claims or attachments, including obligations from collective bargaining agreements with carrier labor unions.
A lawyer for Wexford Capital has revealed that the financial group is not planning to manipulate Silver as a continuing concern. His thin finances have deteriorated even further, he noted. This episode cost the airline’s revenue loss of $1 million.
Unions, Individual Worker Objects
The decision to close the airline has been strongly challenged by the airline’s labor unions, the international brotherhood of Teamsters representing the pilots, and the association of flight attendants and associations. In a joint application in the Peter Rassin Court of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, which has not yet officially approved the proposed revised agreement, the two unions argue that Argentum is obligated to respect labor contracts and pay.
In a statement, AFA President Sarah Nelson, who represents more than 55,000 attendants on 20 Airlines, said the union is opposed to the revised deal.
“The flight attendants were to be paid today, but only 45% of what was paid,” Nelson wrote in an emailed statement to the South Florida San Sentinel. “Silver flight attendants are postponing wages, travel expenses, holidays, sick leave and medical expenses. The company must comply with the warning law, which means flight attendants are entitled to wages for 60 days.”
So far, the airline has not notified the state that it has fired a large portion of its workforce.
“Our union will do everything we can to get this before the judge,” Nelson added. “We won’t stop anything to ensure that the silver flight attendants are fully done.”
In their own individual court applications, six former employees, including Bahamian workers, flight attendants and other Florida employees, asked the court to consider a request to force Argentom to pay his wages back.
In a letter accompanying the court filing, some silver CEO Stephen Rossom accused them of failing to protect their interests. In response to one letter, he said he made his financial sacrifice and did his best to find a buyer and maintain his job.
At the end of Wednesday’s hearing on sale, Rasin, who expressed direct sympathy for more than 12 employees in a Fort Lauderdale courtroom, set up a June 24 hearing to hear individual employees’ claims.
Original issue: 14th June 2025 7am EDT
