Ryanair’s airport agreements are legal, says EU
Ryanair’s agreements with Brussels Charleroi, Frankfurt Hahn, Alghero and Stockholm Vasteras airports do not infringe EU state aid rules, it was decided today.
However, the EU Commission found that the airline’s arrangement with Zweibrucken in Germany did not comply with the rules. Ryanair ceased to operate to the airport in 2009, having carried only 50,000 passengers in a year.
The airline welcomed the EU Commission’s confirmation that the agreements to the other airports under investigation complied with the Market Economy Investor Principle.
The Charleroi finding affirms an EU Court ruling in 2008.
"Today’s rulings are consistent with the EU Commission’s previous confirmation that Ryanair’s airport agreements with Aarhus, Bratislava, Marseille, Niederrhein, Berlin Schönefeld and Tampere airports also comply with EU State aid rules," it said in a statement.
Ryanair’s director of legal and regulatory affairs, Juliusz Komorek, added: "Ryanair has to date carried over 136 million passengers at the 10 airports where our commercial arrangements have been confirmed by the EU Commission and the EU Court to comply with EU law, compared to just 50,000 passengers at Zweibrucken airport where the Commission today suggested that the airport agreement did not comply with State aid rules.
"We remain committed to growing traffic from the current 87 million passengers per annum to over 150 million passengers per annum by 2024, in partnership with both private and public airports across Europe where all of our arrangements are arms-length commercial deals consistent with the EU Market Economy Investor Principle."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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