Italian airline Windjet closes operations

Customers of Windjet, Italy's fourth largest airline, scrambled for alternatives after the carrier announced it had suspended operations during the weekend. At Fiumicino airport in Rome, 200 passengers headed for Tel Aviv, Israel, spent the night in the terminal, and flights to other cities were canceled as well, the Italian news agency ANSA reported Monday. Alitalia Airlines said it was helping Windjet passengers, who hold 300,000 tickets for upcoming flights, to find alternative arrangements, and announced it added 20 more flights to and from Sicily. Windjet, founded in 2003, had been struggling financially for some time, the news agency said.