Hundreds of parents have been left up to $11,000 out of pocket after the abrupt collapse of a tour company offering school students “once-in-a-lifetime” study trips to NASA headquarters.
Tour company Actura offered two-week international study trips that promised to deliver “unforgettable” STEAM education in inspiring environments, including tours of NASA’s Johnson Space Centre in Houston, astronaut training and “immersive space missions”. Fourteen students from Melbourne’s Firbank Grammar School had been due to leave for space camp in less than two weeks. Their parents received news of Actura’s collapse late on Friday night.One father, who asked not to be named, said he had finalised payments for the trip in December, but there were still no flights booked under his child’s name. “We feel duped,” he said. “We’re just so shocked ... parents are extremely angry.
“Given all trading operations were managed out of Australia this means that tours booked by students in other countries will not proceed,” said Shumit Banerjee, the appointed liquidator. Actura, which was established in 2014, offered international study trips, including CASE Space School, CASE Ocean School and CASE Film & Arts School expeditions.In the letter last Friday, Chung told parents that Actura had “exhausted all possible avenues for recovery of its negative cash flow position”.