Tour operator Thomas Cook Group PLC (TCG.LN) said it planned another flight to Tunisia on Sunday to bring back the last few holidaymakers who now want to return home to the U.K. after a state of emergency was declared in the North African country and its leader was forced from power.

A spokeswoman for Thomas Cook said the majority of travellers that booked with the company were brought back Friday but that they were sending out another plane on Sunday to bring back about 80 people who had changed their minds and now wanted to return to the U.K.

About 1,500 people of the 1,800 that booked with Thomas Cook UK returned on Friday.

The company's next departures for Tunisia were scheduled for Sunday, but those trips have been cancelled in line with advice from the U.K.'s Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Thomas Cook UK said that it would reimburse the remaining days accommodation costs for those holidaymakers who are being flown home early. Passengers due to fly Sunday are able to switch to other destinations or will be entitled to full refunds.

The company couldn't say how much the incident had cost them but said it's now assessing the impact.

Chief Executive Manny Fontenla-Novoa in a statement said Saturday the crisis in Tunisia highlighted the importance of booking holidays with big companies that were bonded by Air Travel Organizers' Licensing, a U.K. plan that protects holidaymakers in special circumstances from losing money or being stranded abroad.

Tunisia isn't a major destination for U.K. tourists but had been growing in its popularity.

The Thomas Cook spokeswoman added that its French unit started repatriating people back to France Saturday after the government changed its advice in the morning.

TUI Travel PLC (TT.LN) couldn't be reached immediately, but Friday on the website of its Thomson brand it detailed a plan to repatriate its customers from the crisis-hit country.

The company, Europe's largest tour operator whose brands include First Choice, brought home 100 holidaymakers Friday and planned to rescue the remaining 1,437 Saturday.

-By Kaveri Niththyananthan, Dow Jones Newswires; 4420 7842 9299; kaveri.niththyananthan@dowjones.com

 
 
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