Thomas Cook Boss Apologises For Corfu Deaths

Thomas Cook (Xetra: A0MR3W - news) narrowed its first-half operating loss and said it had seen no impact from calls for a boycott following criticism of its handling of the deaths of two children in Corfu.

The company's CEO issued an apology to the family of Bobby and Christi Shepherd, who died as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning while on a Thomas Cook holiday in 2006.

"I'm deeply sorry as a father myself about the tragic deaths on a Thomas Cook holiday," CEO Peter Fankhauser said.

"It is absolutely clear that there are things that we as a company could have done better in the past nine years - in particular how we have conducted our relationship with the family."

The company came under criticism after it emerged that it had received compensation from owners of the Louis Corcyra Beach Hotel, where the siblings died as they were overcome by fumes from a faulty boiler.

The compensation is understood to be around ten times the amount the parents received. Thomas Cook said this week it was donating £1.5m to UNICEF .

However, after it emerged that the children's parents had not been consulted on the donation, the holiday firm faced a storm of criticism on Twitter (Xetra: A1W6XZ - news) and other social media.

The children's family had also complained for not receiving a direct apology from the company.

An inquest found the children had been "unlawfully killed" and said Thomas Cook had "breached its duty of care".

Thomas Cook shares fell around 3% on Monday as some social media users called for a boycott of the company over the case.

But Mr Fankhauser said: "So far we don't see any impact on our bookings."

The company said bookings for summer holidays were encouraging, adding that demand for holidays in Britain and flights in Germany were offsetting tough trading conditions in other parts of its German business.

Earlier, Thomas Cook reported an underlying operating loss of £173m for the six months ended on 31 March, narrowing a seasonal loss when fewer customers holiday from £187m in the same period last year.

The company repeated guidance provided last November that on a constant currency basis it expected growth in full-year earnings.

The family were on a £2,000 holiday on the Greek island in October 2006.

Bobby and Christi, aged six and seven, were were found dead in their chalet by a chambermaid. Their father Neil Shepherd and his partner were found in a coma but survived.