Security fears hit Thomas Cook as tourists choose Spain over Turkey

Thomas Cook said its summer bookings fell as security concerns meant more holidaymakers opted for breaks in Spain over Turkey, Tunisia and Egypt, outstripping its efforts to adjust flights. Despite shifting 1.2m airline seats from the eastern to the western Mediterranean, the travel operator said bookings were down by 5% and full-year profit would now be at the bottom end of market forecasts. CE Fankhauser said Turkey had not recovered as he had hoped after an attack on tourists in Istanbul in January. "This has had a particular impact on our German airlines business, which is the market leader into Turkey." Holidaymakers could turn to Turkey at the last minute, Fankhauser said. "There is no late market in Spain, because Spain is filling up extremely fast, and then there may be a shift back into Turkey," he said. <br/>