Thomas Cook investors headed for the departure lounge today as chief executive Harriet Green announced her shock exit from the travel firm.
Shares in the FTSE 250 stock slumped by 18 per cent, wiping more than £350 million off the group's market value, after Ms Green's results day departure was accompanied by a warning that the company's pace of recovery will moderate in the current year.
The double blow had a knock-on effect for other travel stocks, with TUI Travel and easyJet both lower, in a session when the FTSE 100 Index was flat, edging 2 points lower to 6729.2.
New York's Dow Jones Industrial Average was flat as the US headed into its Thanksgiving break while in Europe continued hopes of more monetary stimulus saw Germany's Dax advancing though France's Cac 40 fell.
On currency markets, the pound strengthened by a cent against the greenback to just under 1.58 US dollars after UK consumer spending grew by 0.8 per cent in the third quarter, its strongest pace since the second quarter of 2010.
The performance meant GDP grew by 0.7 per cent in the July-September period, as previously forecast by the Office for National Statistics. Sterling also climbed against the single currency, at 1.26 euros.
Telecom and broadcast stocks were among the FTSE 100 risers as EE confirmed it was in the early stages of talks with BT over a deal that could see Orange and Deutsche Telekom offload their UK mobile phone business.
The prospect of consolidation in the communications sector drove shares in a number of major players, with BT up 8.6p to 404.4p, Vodafone 1.1p ahead at 225.6p and Sky 6p higher at 924p.
Thomas Cook's slide - a reversal in its recent recovery - left the stock 24.4p lower at 113.5p, although the company is still above the price seen a month ago.
It also pointed out that shares were just 14p when Ms Green took the helm in July 2012 when the 170-year-old firm had just tapped its banks for £200 million.
The warning that growth will moderate in the current financial year due to tougher conditions in many of its markets meant rival TUI Travel led the top-flight fallers' board, off 9p to 417.5p. Easyjet dipped 15p to 1545p.
Elsewhere, shares in fashion retailer French Connection surged 10 per cent or 5p to 56p after it said it continues to reduce its losses.
Like-for-like sales fell 5.7 per cent in the 17 weeks to November 22 but it avoided large-scale discounting as margins improved by 2.4 per cent.
The biggest risers in the FTSE 100 Index were Antofagasta, up 27.5p to 761p, Kingfisher up 7.4p to 298.7p, BT up 8.6p to 404.4p and SSE up 29p to 1609p.
The biggest fallers in the FTSE 100 Index were TUI Travel down 9p to 417.5p, Smith & Nephew down 16p to 1107p, Compass down 14p to 1060p and Coca-Cola HBC down 18p to 1428p.
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