A Singapore-based company and another in India have been indicted on multiple criminal charges over a 2024 ship crash that destroyed a bridge in the US state of Maryland and left six people dead, officials said Tuesday.

Synergy Marine, based in Singapore, and Synergy Maritime, based in Chennai, India, are accused of conspiracy to defraud, making false statements to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and other charges.

An Indian national, Radhakrishnan Karthik Nair, 47, who worked for both companies as technical superintendent for the ship, the M/V Dali, is also named in the indictment unsealed on Tuesday.

US Attorney Kelly Hayes said Nair is not in custody and is believed to be in India.

The Dali, a 984-foot container ship, suffered a series of electrical problems in the early morning of March 26, 2024, and crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Patapsco River, which collapsed like a house of cards, blocking the busy shipping channel for the port of Baltimore.

Six construction workers on the bridge, all Latin American immigrants, fell to their deaths.

The NTSB found that the probable cause of the disaster was a loss of electrical power due to a loose wire connection in a high-voltage switchboard, resulting in the vessel losing propulsion and steering as it approached the bridge.

“The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge was a preventable tragedy of enormous consequence,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement. “This indictment is a critical step toward holding accountable those whose reckless disregard for maritime safety regulations caused this disaster.”

FBI special agent Jimmy Paul said the indictment “reveals a pattern of deception and egregious violations that led to the unsafe operation of the Dali which recklessly endangered the public and resulted in the ship striking the bridge.”

“Synergy and Radhakrishnan Karthik Nair repeatedly failed to document, investigate and report significant safety risks and hazards aboard the Dali,” Paul said. “They forged safety inspections and certifications.

“They falsely claimed the ship was in good working order and then lied to investigators about their actions when they were questioned.”

The US Justice Department announced in October 2024 that it had reached a $100 million settlement with Singapore’s Synergy Marine and another company, Grace Ocean, to recover costs incurred in responding to the disaster and for removing tons of bridge debris from the channel leading to the port of Baltimore.

Maryland authorities have said it will cost more than $5.2 billion to rebuild the bridge with completion envisioned in 2030.

Greg Abbott is planning his summer holiday with half an eye on the Iran war. He intends to stay closer to home in Europe and is lining up a plan B, wary of rising air fares and cancellations.

The 54-year-old Britain-based Australian is planning a cycling trip with friends in Austria, a festival in Barcelona and possibly a yoga retreat in France. But he doesn’t want to go too far and is keeping travel options open.

“We’ll almost certainly be doing short-haul Europe, and almost certainly be doing trains, because they run on electricity,” said Abbott, head of operations for a broadcasting company, adding cost was a key factor against longer trips.

“The prices are just crazy at the moment.”

Across Europe and beyond, tourists are reshaping plans in a world of $100 oil, tight jet fuel supply, higher costs and Middle East conflict disrupting popular routes. Many are booking later and building in flexibility.

“We observe travellers becoming more cautious and deliberate,” said Susanne Dickhardt, co-founder of camper van and motorhome hire firm Roadsurfer.

Most are adapting rather than cancelling, she said, staying nearer home, driving and choosing formats that ⁠keep costs down.

‘People get nervous’

Tourism and aviation are among the sectors most exposed to the war. Slow-moving peace talks point to a prolonged stand-off, hitting Gulf airlines and popular hubs such as Dubai, while nearly doubling jet fuel prices.

“You’ve got a war happening — a major war,” said Jean-Francois Rial, CEO of tour operator Voyageurs du Monde, adding his firm had seen business drop around a quarter in March, easing to about a 10% decline in April.

“People get nervous; they don’t want to travel anymore.”

Airlines warn profits are under pressure. Air France-KLM, expects its jet fuel bill to jump by $2.4 billion this year, while Lufthansa and British Airways owner IAG see rises of about $2 billion.

US low-cost carrier Spirit went bust this month, stoking fears others could follow. European budget carriers with thin margins and limited fuel hedging, such as Wizz Air and airBaltic, face challenges, though are less vulnerable than Spirit, said Rohit Kumar, vice president of corporate ratings at Morningstar.

“Given that summer is the most profitable period for airlines, any disruption to volumes or costs during this peak season will have a material impact on earnings”, he said.

Last-minute bookings

Travellers are delaying decisions. Jerome Vayr, president of France-based Vacances Bleues, said plans are often made days before departure and ⁠trips are shorter.

“Last-minute bookings are rising significantly, by around 15%,” he said. “I think people are waiting to see what will happen with inflation, waiting to see whether or not they’ll be able to travel abroad.”

Demand overall remains resilient, airlines and officials say, but destinations are shifting, with domestic travel gaining.

Ricardo Fernandez Flores, head of Spanish online travel agency Destinia, said Spain, Greece and Portugal were viewed as safer bets, with more self-drive holidays.

“What we’re seeing in the data is not a slowdown in travel demand, but a shift in where travellers are choosing to go,” said Jay Wardle, president at travel data group Sojern, highlighting well-connected, stable Mediterranean markets.

Gabriel Escarrer, CEO of Spain’s largest ⁠hotel chain Melia, expects strong bookings in “safe-haven” regions.

“Spain and the Caribbean are far away enough from conflict zones and close enough to key source markets to offer a sort of safe-haven destination this summer,” he said.

Waiting for things to ‘clear up’

Rail is gaining. Alvaro Ungurean, director of Trainpal, reported a 25% rise in Eurostar ticket sales, while nearly twice as many Britons are looking to travel by train in France this year.

Even business trips are shifting, with ⁠rail bookings rising, said Charlie Sultan, president of Concur Travel at German software maker SAP.

Alice Woodhouse, based in Hong Kong, plans to stay in Asia and offset soaring fares.

“With ticket prices so high, I’ve been looking at where I can use my airline miles. Southeast Asia or maybe Taiwan is most likely,” she said.

Others are holding off booking. Diego Dutra, who runs a corporate relocation firm from Portugal, is ⁠avoiding flying and may opt for a road trip instead of visiting family in Italy.

“We’re just going to postpone until things clear up a bit,” he said.

• Junior minister resigns, calling for him to set a timetable.
• Almost 80 lawmakers call for Starmer to go.
• Borrowing costs rise, sterling falls on new instability.
  

LONDON: Prime Minister Keir Starmer defied calls to resign on Tuesday, telling ministers he would “get on with governing” despite a “destabilising” 48 hours of growing calls to set out a timetable for his departure after an election drubbing.

At a meeting of his cabinet team of ministers, Starmer, in the top job for less than two years, repeated that while he took responsibility for one of his Labour Party’s worst election defeats, there had been no official move to trigger a leadership contest.

“The past 48 hours have been destabilising for government and that has a real economic cost for our country and for families,” Starmer told ministers, according to his Downing Street office.

“The country expects us to get on with governing. That is what I am doing and what we must do as a Cabinet.”

British government bonds rallied weakly on Starmer’s comments, but remained firmly in the red for the day.

His defiance was in marked contrast to the feelings of many in his Labour Party.

On Tuesday, a junior minister resigned after a handful of ministerial aides also left the government. More than 80 Labour lawmakers have publicly called for him to set a resignation date so the party could install a new leader in an orderly manner.

Starmer had sought to shore up his position on Monday when he promised to act more boldly and with more urgency to tackle Britain’s many problems.

He had said the country would never forgive the centre-left Labour Party if it embarked on a leadership challenge, just two years after its huge parliamentary majority was supposed to bring an end to the political chaos that had gripped the country since Britain voted to leave the European Union 10 years ago.