Ryanair has said it will appeal the European Commission’s decision ordering France to recover €1.8 million in alleged illegal state aid granted to the airline through agreements with Carcassonne Airport.
In a statement, the carrier argued that the historical (2001-2011) agreements with Carcassonne were commercial in nature, bringing much-needed traffic and connectivity to the region. “Ryanair will appeal the decision, and we are confident the Court will recognise the commercial character of our historic agreements with Carcassonne Airport,” it said.
The airline accused the Commission’s Directorate-General for Competition of “selective and biased” application of state aid law, noting that it allowed €40 billion in support to state-owned airlines during the pandemic, half of which was later found unlawful by the Court.
Ryanair urged DG Competition to immediately recover the benefits of illegal Covid aid from Lufthansa and Air France-KLM, rather than, as it put it, “wasting taxpayers’ money on pointless investigations into 25-year-old airport agreements that have benefitted airports and consumers alike.”
CNA sourced reporting
