Harriet PriceZenith Aviation Limited, a Biggin Hill-based private jet charter and aircraft management firm, entered administration on 15 May 2026, cancelling all flights and leaving 41 employees without jobs. The company, which operated executive jet hire, aircraft management, and engineering services across Britain and Europe, was placed in an insolvent position due to a combination of cashflow problems, unpaid debts from clients, and longstanding ownership and management issues. The collapse came less than 18 months after private jet operator Opul Jets acquired the business at the start of 2025. For clients who had bookings, employees who showed up to work and were told the company had collapsed, and businesses that relied on Zenith's aircraft management services, the question now is the same: what are you legally entitled to?
What Happened to Zenith Aviation
Administration is a formal insolvency process in which a licensed insolvency practitioner — the administrator — takes control of a company to try to rescue it, sell it as a going concern, or realise its assets for the benefit of creditors. When an administrator is appointed, the company typically ceases trading immediately. In Zenith's case, that meant all flights were grounded on the day of appointment.
Zenith had operated as a well-regarded provider of executive aviation services, with a client base spanning private individuals, corporate customers, and third-party aircraft owners whose planes were managed under contract. The collapse was attributed to cashflow pressures compounded by debtors failing to pay outstanding invoices, alongside historical issues from earlier ownership. The acquisition by Opul Jets in early 2025 had been intended to stabilise the business, but the financial difficulties proved unresolvable.
What Passengers and Clients Are Legally Entitled To
The legal protections available to you depend significantly on how you paid for your booking and whether your travel was protected under the ATOL scheme.
ATOL (Air Travel Organiser's Licence) is the UK's main consumer protection scheme for package holidays and flight-inclusive holidays. If your booking was made through an ATOL-protected travel agent or tour operator, you are entitled to a full refund if the flight cannot be operated. However, private jet charters typically fall outside standard ATOL coverage, and direct bookings made with an operator like Zenith are less likely to have ATOL protection than high-street holiday bookings.
Credit card and debit card protection: If you paid for a booking by credit card and the service has not been delivered, Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 gives you the right to claim a refund from your credit card provider. The claim is made directly to your bank, and the card company is jointly liable with the retailer for the full value of the transaction. This applies to credit card payments over £100. For debit card payments, the Chargeback scheme provides a similar — but contractually rather than legally based — protection.
Check your travel insurance: Many premium travel insurance policies include protection against airline or travel company insolvency. Check your policy documents carefully. Some policies require that you had purchased the insurance before the insolvency became publicly known, so early action matters.
For the UK Government's guidance on passenger rights when an airline goes bust, the key principle is that your right to a refund is not extinguished simply because the company has collapsed. The route to recovery — whether through ATOL, Section 75, Chargeback, or insurance — depends on the specific circumstances of your booking.
Rights for Zenith's Employees
For the 41 employees who lost their jobs when Zenith entered administration, the situation is governed by employment insolvency law. The core protections are:
Statutory redundancy pay: Employees with two or more years' continuous service are entitled to statutory redundancy pay, calculated based on age, length of service, and weekly pay. If the company cannot pay, the Redundancy Payments Service (RPS) — part of the Insolvency Service — will pay statutory redundancy directly to eligible employees.
Arrears of pay: If you are owed wages at the point of insolvency — including pay for work already done, holiday pay accrued but not taken, and notice pay — these are preferential debts in the insolvency process. The RPS can also make payments for arrears of pay up to a statutory cap (currently eight weeks), unpaid holiday pay (up to six weeks), and payment in lieu of notice.
Pension contributions: If the company failed to pass on pension contributions it deducted from your wages, this is a matter for both the Pensions Regulator and the insolvency process.
Employees should register their claims with the administrator as quickly as possible. The administrator will provide a claims form and process. Claims to the RPS must be made within a defined period, and delays can complicate recovery.
What About Businesses That Used Zenith's Aircraft Management Services?
Zenith also provided aircraft management services — handling the day-to-day operational, maintenance, and regulatory compliance requirements for third-party aircraft owners. If you owned an aircraft managed by Zenith, the situation is more complex.
Aircraft ownership documentation, maintenance records, and airworthiness certificates are legally yours. However, recovering physical access to an aircraft and its documentation from an administrator requires coordination with the appointed insolvency practitioner and potentially the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), which oversees airworthiness and registration.
If your aircraft was generating charter revenue through Zenith's operations, you may also have claims as a creditor in the insolvency process. The amounts recoverable will depend on where your claim ranks in the hierarchy of creditors — which, in most insolvencies, sees secured creditors (typically lenders with fixed charges) paid first, followed by employees' preferential claims, then unsecured creditors.
Getting Legal Advice After an Aviation Insolvency
The range of legal questions that arise from an aviation administration — passenger refunds, employee rights, aircraft recovery, contract disputes, creditor claims — is broad enough that no single short article can address all of them adequately. What it can do is flag where the legal complexity lies.
If your loss is significant — a substantial charter booking, a managed aircraft, significant arrears of pay or redundancy entitlements, or money owed by Zenith as a trade creditor — getting legal advice early in the process is important. The administration timetable moves quickly, and creditor claims need to be filed within defined windows.
If you have dealt with a similar situation following disruption by another UK carrier, the process for claiming through your credit card provider or insurance is broadly similar — but insolvency adds layers of complexity that straightforward delay or cancellation claims do not involve.
A solicitor specialising in aviation law, insolvency law, or employment law (depending on your specific situation) can advise you on your realistic prospects of recovery and the most effective approach.
This article provides general information as of 22 May 2026 and does not constitute legal advice. For advice on your specific situation, please consult a qualified solicitor.
