PHUKET: Hundreds of passengers have been stranded on Phuket after Air Australia - previously branded Strategic - was placed into administration, effectively shutting the airline.

Intimations of trouble came last year when under the Strategic brand planeloads of passengers were trapped on Phuket for days because of a mechanical failure.

Now is seems the crisis is probably permanent. Qantas and Jetstar were reported to be scrambling to provide a ''rescue'' flight for stranded Phuket passengers today.

A change in name late last year and a switch from full service to budget has done no good for the trouble-prone Air Australia brand. It was operating between Phuket and Melbourne, Phuket and Brisbane, and also flying to Bali and Honolulu from Australia.

The airline's web site makes a brief statement declaring that the brand is now ''in the hands of administrators''.

The airline was denying it was broke as late as yesterday and on Wednesday had been continuing to sell tickets, said theaustralian.com.au.

Voluntary administrator Mark Korda said up to 4000 passengers were currently overseas with Air Australia return tickets.

Air Australia flight VC241 from Phuket to Melbourne was listed as ''cancelled'' on Melbourne Airport's website.

A media release given to passengers at Phuket airport said the airline's fleet would be grounded indefinitely and told travellers to make alternate travel arrangements, according to news.com.au

There was no Air Australia staff at Phuket International Airport to assist passengers when it appears the aircraft was refused a load of fuel on credit.

Angry passengers vented their rage on Facebook and Twitter.

The media release said: ''In the short term, the fleet will be grounded. It currently appears that there are no funds available to meet operational expenses so flights will be suspended immediately,'' it said.

''For clarity, it also appears highly unlikely there will be any flights in the short to medium term.''

Stranded on Phuket, Air Australia passenger Sarah McGavin said passengers at were not told what was going on - which was also the case last year when the Strategic group was stranded.

''We have been told that the flight was delayed twice and then nothing for several hours,''' she told Australian television station, Channel 9.

''Then we had passengers go up and ask, the rumor mill went around that they had gone into administration.''

She said that she had managed to book another flight back to Melbourne. Many others vented their anger on Facebook and Twitter.

Honeymooners Michael and Tiffany Ilyine were among those stranded in Phuket after their flight was cancelled overnight, they told news.com.au.

Mr Ilyine, from Geelong, a city near Melbourne, said the couple had been due to fly out at 7.30pm Phuket time after their 10-day honeymoon in Samui.

The couple had checked in to their flight and their bags were loaded onto the plane but they were never able to board.

Mr Ilyine said the plane's departure was delayed a number of times before passengers were handed the media release from receivers KordaMentha after midnight.