Ryanair Slams German Government Bailout Plan for Rival Lufthansa

Dublin (dpa) - Low-cost airline Ryanair on Tuesday slammed a bailout plan for German rival Lufthansa, saying it "distorts competition" with other airlines across Europe.

The criticism came the day after the German government and Lufthansa said they had agreed on a deal providing aid and equity measures worth 9 billion euros (9.8 billion dollars).

The deal was yet to be approved by Lufthansa's supervisory board and the European Commission's competition watchdog.

The status of some 138,000 employed by the airline and its many subsidiaries, including Austrian and Brussels, was a major factor.

Ryanair claimed the move would "further strengthen Lufthansa’s monopoly-like grip on the German air travel market."

Ryanair group chief executive Michael O'Leary said it was "deeply ironic that the German government, which lectures all other EU countries about respecting EU rules, has no difficulty breaking the state aid rules when it comes to Lufthansa."

Ryanair will "appeal against this latest example of illegal state aid to Lufthansa," he added.

Germany has not yet officially notified the EU executive branch about the Lufthansa deal, a spokesperson for the European Commission said on Tuesday, declining to make any specific comment on the case.

In general, large recapitalizations of more than 250 million euros comes with stricter conditions than other state aid initiatives, Arianna Podesta said.

Meanwhile, Bavarian state premier Markus Soeder warned against making too many concessions for EU approval.

If Lufthansa were to be forced to give up airport slots in the main cities of Frankfurt and Munich to other airlines, it would be an "incomprehensible constraint," he said in Munich.

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