Thousands left stranded by Swiss airline economic collapse

GENEVA -- Swissair, a pillar of the Swiss establishment, was a source of unparalleled national shame Wednesday as this proud Alpine country faced up to the reality of the grounding of the national flag carrier.

Some 38,000 people were stranded worldwide and tens of thousands more held worthless tickets as Swissair desperately sought the cash to meet demands for upfront payment of fuel and airport taxes. At Zurich airport -- the worst hit by the chaos -- passengers without a flight or hotel faced the prospect of a second straight night in a nuclear bunker.

"It's like a coup d'etat in a banana republic," fumed Heinz Bieri, among about 5,000 protesters outside Swissair headquarters near Zurich, summing up the mood of fury and disbelief.

The crisis came despite a rescue package put together Monday by Swiss banking giants UBS and Credit Suisse after Swissair filed for protection from creditors -- a step short of bankruptcy. The deal was intended to give the airline time to reorganize without being carved up in a bankruptcy court.

However, a cash advance necessary to meet running costs failed to materialize as scheduled Tuesday because UBS chief Marcel Ospel couldn't be contacted to give the necessary approval. Finance Minister Kaspar Villiger was told that Ospel was traveling and couldn't be reached.

'Humiliated country'

"Never in the history of this country has a democratically elected government been so humiliated by a bank manager," said a front-page editorial in Zurich's Tagesanzeiger.

At an emergency session Wednesday, the Swiss government agreed to provide a bridging loan of up to $281 million to help Swissair resume its flights Thursday and stay in the air until the end of October.

"This crisis has caused huge damage," Villiger said. "It's the image of Switzerland that is at stake."

Some 10,000 demonstrators -- including top managers of Swissair -- massed in front of UBS headquarters Wednesday in an unprecedented protest against the powerful banks. Uniformed pilots waved banners at Zurich's main railway station and most expensive shopping street.

UBS received at least two bomb threats Wednesday and disgusted clients closed accounts.