Ryanair has welcomed a ruling by the EU General Court which states the €3.4bn Covid state aid, granted by the Netherlands to Air France-KLM in 2020, should not have been approved.
It's the second time the budget airline has brought the same case against the European Commission to the EU court.
In a 2021 case brought by Ryanair against the European Commission, the EU General Court ruled that the Commission's approval of the state aid should be overturned on the grounds that the EU
executive had failed to demonstrate that aid already granted to Air France would not also benefit the Dutch airline, KLM.
However, the court allowed the Commission to re-examine the case "due to the
particularly damaging impact of the pandemic on the Netherlands'
economy".
The Commission subsequently cleared it, prompting Ryanair to take the case back to the EU's second highest court.
During the pandemic more than €40bn in state subsidies was given to EU flag carriers.
In May last year a European court annulled the decision by the
European Commission to approve a €6 billion state bailout for Lufthansa
after Ryanair and Condor launched legal action against the Commission
for approving the rescue package.
Ryanair also launched legal action against the Commission for
approving the Italian government’s rescue package for Italian carriers
during the pandemic of €130 million.
Ryanair’s spokesperson said: “Today’s judgement confirms that the Commission must act as a guardian of the level playing field in air transport and cannot sign-off discriminatory state aid issued by national governments. The Court’s intervention is a triumph for fair competition and consumers across the EU."
The spokesperson concluded: "Undistorted competition eliminates inefficiency and benefits
consumers through low fares and choice. Unjustified subsidies, on the
other hand, encourage ineffectiveness and will harm consumers for
decades to come.”
The airline has called for the European Commission to order the
Netherlands to recover the multi-billion euro state aid package from Air
France-KLM.
As reported by Reuters, the Dutch carrier said in a statement: "KLM
will study the verdict and will investigate further steps. KLM repaid
the loans relating to the state aid in June, 2022. The credit facility
was ended in April, 2023."
The European Commission can appeal the General Court's decision in the
European Court of Justice.