EU court annuls approval of French pandemic aid to Air France and Air France-KLM
ABC News
Low-cost airlines Ryanair and Malta Air have won a court case against the European Union’s decision to approve billions of euros in state aid by the French government to holding company Air France-KLM during the COVID-19 pandemic
BRUSSELS -- Low-cost airlines Ryanair and Malta Air won a court case Wednesday against the European Union's decision to approve billions of euros in state aid by the French government to Air France and holding company Air France-KLM during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ryanair has filed several court challenges against measures introduced by EU countries to help some airlines weather the fallout of coronavirus restrictions.
The bloc's 27 members must seek approval from the European Commission, the EU's executive branch, when granting financial support to companies. Many countries across Europe did so to help keep their airlines afloat during the pandemic.
Back in 2020, French authorities notified the European Commission of an aid measure of 7 billion euros ($7.67 billion), which was supposed to benefit Air France solely, to the exclusion of all the other companies in the Air France-KLM group. A year later, France told the European Commission about plans for 4-billion-euro ($4.38 billion) recapitalization of Air France and the holding company.
In both cases, the European Commission didn't raise objections.
