Generous airline passengers raised £5,000 in a whip-round for Thomas Cook cabin crew who had just learned the firm had collapsed.

Caring passengers collected two carrier bags of cash this morning for the flight attendants after the flight from Las Vegas to Manchester.

The pilot had earlier told the more than 300 passengers to ‘pray for staff’ amid fears Thomas Cook was going to fold.

One passenger Tommy Laing posted on Facebook: ‘I’ve just landed in Manchester from Vegas, was flying with Thomas Cook, the staff told us mid flight that they’d just been told half way through the flight that we were on the last Thomas Cook flight anywhere.

‘They had just lost their jobs and would not be getting paid this month, they were all in tears.

‘Soon as we landed a Scottish girl stands up, right folks I’m having a whip round get your money out £20 each.’

‘And if that’s not the most Scottish thing ever I don’t know what is.

‘Was a joyful moment!’

Another passenger Stephanie Kaye, 25, had driven from San Francisco to Las Vegas with her partner Anouj Patel, 28, and was heading back to Manchester Airport.

She described how tearful staff discovered the company had collapsed while they had been in the air, and they had all been made redundant immediately.

She said: ‘When we landed the pilot came on the Tannoy and said “our dream has ended” and told us the staff would probably not be getting paid for working that flight.

‘Staff had remained so professional throughout the eight-hour flight, so the passengers did a whip round for them.

“People were being really generous, stuffing rolls of cash, and leftover dollars, into two carrier bags.

‘Staff told the passengers how overwhelmed and grateful they were for the support.

‘It was a really emotional atmosphere, even passengers were crying as they got off the flight.’

‘Everyone just felt so lucky that we had been able to get home.’

Thomas Cook ceased trading yesterday after failing to secure a last-ditch rescue deal and about 9,000 staff face redundancy.

An estimated 150,000 people are being brought back to the UK by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in a flight programme costing £100 million.

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