Business News
Austrian Airlines needs billion euro if Lufthansa deal fails: board
Jul 14, 2009, 15:40 GMT
Vienna - Troubled carrier Austrian Airlines will need a total billion euro (1.4 billion dollar) bailout from the government if its planned takeover by Deutsche Lufthansa were to fail, the head of Austrian's supervisory board said Tuesday.
Lufthansa's takeover offer runs out on July 31, but the European Commission has signalled it will not greenlight the deal if the German carrier does not give up further landing rights to prevent a monopoly position on certain routes.
If the deal fails, Austria's government would have to inject 500 million euros in addition to the 500 million it has already earmarked for the flag carrier, supervisory board chairman Peter Michaelis said at the annual shareholders meeting in Vienna.
The plan to sell the Austrian state's 42-per-cent stake in the flag carrier would create Europe's biggest airline group in terms of passenger numbers.
Pending the deal can be closed in time, shareholders designated Lufthansa chief Wolfgang Mayrhuber as the new board chairman.
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