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Lufthansa to complete takeover of Austrian Airlines
Sep 3, 2009, 8:05 GMT
Frankfurt/Vienna - German carrier Deutsche Lufthansa AG is to complete the takeover of Austrian Airlines AG Thursday by signing the final contracts in Vienna, said Stefan Lauer, a member of Lufthansa's executive board.
With this deal, the Lufthansa group is to become Europe's biggest carrier, surpassing French-Dutch airline AirFrance-KLM in terms of passenger numbers.
Speaking in Frankfurt, Lauer praised Austrian Airlines' staff for their cooperation in implementing a series of cost-cutting measures that include cutting 1,000 full-time positions among 8,000 employees until the middle of next year.
The ailing Vienna-based flag carrier is to retain its network of destinations, as was the case when Swiss, British Midland and Brussels Airlines joined the Lufthansa group, the manager said.
The German company is to pay a maximum of 382 million euros (544 million dollars) for the takeover, depending on future business development.
The deal cleared the last hurdle in late August when the European Commission agreed to the plan and to the Austrian government's state aid, under the condition that landing rights be given up on routes between Vienna and several German destinations as well as Brussels.
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