VivaAerobus shuts down Austin flights

VivaAerobus, the low-cost Mexican airline that began service out of Austin in 2008, is grounding its local flights citing a decline in revenue and passengers that followed the swine flu scare.

After only a year in operation, the airline will stop its flights from Austin to Cancun and Puerto Vallarta on May 31.

During the month of May alone, half of the airline's booked passengers asked to cancel their flights and the number of passenger "no shows" went as high as 30 percent, officials said.

VivaAerobus operated exclusively out of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport's South Terminal. With the airline terminating its flights, the low-cost dedicated terminal will also shut down at the end of the month.

Those who have bought tickets on VivaAerobus flights scheduled after May 31 will receive an immediate full refund, the airline said.