The company admitted it might not be able to commence flights next month after a key investor walked away. Powdair is a ‘virtual airline’ registered in Ireland, which plans to operate flights via an investment in BackBone Aviation, a company that would operate 50-seat aircraft on its behalf.

Powdair, which aimed to fly to Scion airport in Switzerland from a number of UK airports including London City, Manchester and Bristol, said it needed £1 million within a week and £3 million to last the season.

In a Facebook message, chief financial officer Sean Pettit said: “This morning our key financial backer walked away from the Powdair journey for personal reasons.”

Powdair indicated that its December 11 launch date was likely to be postponed: “At this late stage, community ownership is realistically the only way we’ll be able to make Powdair operational this winter,” it said. Pettit added. “I’d personally like to hear from anyone interested in owning either a small or large part of our airline."

The airline claims 5,000 forward bookings and another 85 season passes sold. In its Facebook message, it added that it would be contacting clients due to travel between December 11 and 17 “to discuss your existing booking”.