Belgian airline Sabena is beginning to disintegrate after staff walked out at the prospect of the stricken airline going bankrupt, abandoning check-in desks and stranding hundreds of passengers.
The only known potential investor, Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Express airline, said the last-ditch recovery plan for the carrier, which has made a profit only once since 1958, was unworkable.
Airport officials advised travellers not to come to Brussels's Zaventem national airport where travellers queued at deserted check-in desks for flights that would never take off.
Sabena later announced all flights had been cancelled until 2 p.m.
While talks were continuing, Virgin Express said it had decided to pursue an independent development plan and begin four new European services from Brussels.
The European Commission has repeated that a one-month euro 125 million bridging loan the Belgian government gave Sabena in October must not be used for recapitalisation.
Government sources had said earlier Sabena would suspend all flights tomorrow, but only a few flights left early today before workers walked out.
Travel agents said they were strongly advising travellers not to book flights on Sabena, although tickets were still on sale in some of Sabena's offices in Europe.