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It has not been the easiest end to the year for the travel industry. Two Scandinavian airlines, Braathens and Play Airlines, filed for bankruptcy in September and left thousands of travelers stranded in different parts of Europe while the latter carrier’s shutdown triggered the domino bankruptcy of a local Icelandic travel company whose flight packages relied primarily on Play flights. In the United Kingdom, East Midlands-based airline Eastern Airways similarly shut down operations and canceled dozens of flights over the same issue of rising debt and inability to bring in the necessary traffic as a regional airline. Along with the shutdowns of airlines and tour operators, one of the country’s most iconic sailboat manufacturers has also shut down production. Founded by Frank Butler in 1969 in California, Catalina Yachts manufactures thousands of sailboats of between eight to 54 feet in length. Catalina Yachts says it is “navigating short-term financial challenges” In a letter that company President Patrick Turner sent out to its customers earlier this month, Catalina says that the company has entered a “temporary production pause while we reorganize key areas of our operation.” “Like many manufacturers in today’s environment, we are navigating short-term financial challenges,” Turner’s note reads further. “Rather than pushing ahead in a way that could compromise quality or consistency, we have chosen to take a responsible pause while we finalize the support needed to move forward stronger.” While the letter stresses that this pause is strictly temporary, the allusion to the company’s financial problems immediately sent shockwaves among customers and the local sailing community (Catalina sailboats are now manufactured in Largo, Florida but much of its customer base remains in California). In May 2025, Catalina Yachts and its parent company True North Yachts were purchased by Daedalus Yachts founder Michael Reardon in a private transaction. Five months after the sale in October, Reardon was evicted from the Largo manufacturing facility over non-payment of rent. The lawsuit heard in Florida court states that Reardon had not made the full payments he was contractually required to and started going back on his agreement shortly after the purchase. What the Catalina Yachts shutdown means for existing boat owners, customers Turner’s letter states that the company will “continue to share updates as we move through this transition and return to production with renewed strength.” But boat owners in multiple parts of the country expressed concern about both existing orders and the future of the main producers of sailboats of a certain size in the country, given the abrupt announcement that does not go into specifics of what exact financial problems they ran into. More on travel: Major airline launches surprising flight between Las Vegas and Paris United Airlines CEO gives stark warning on Olympic Games The highest rooftop in Barcelona is in a surprising place US government issues sudden warning on Switzerland travel “Catalina sailboats are one of the most popular sailboats in Maine,” Neal Weinstein, a sailor and lawyer in the state, said to The Maine Wire. “There are hundreds of Catalina owners throughout the state, from lakes to the ocean, as they make boats from 12.5 to 44 feet.” When pushed on the situation, Turner said that “pending orders” will be honored but the eviction from the manufacturing facility at Largo leaves much uncertainty about how exactly that will happen.
