14 Feb 2011
Lufthansa and airberlin have been given the go-ahead to sue Ryanair for getting what they claim are unfair subsidies in Germany.
Germany’s Federal Court of Justice said low fees charged to Ryanair for flying into ‘secondary’ airports Frankfurt-Hahn and Lubeck may breach European Union competition rules.
It says Lufthansa and airberlin can take their case to a civil court, overturning previous court decisions that they could not challenge the charges in a civil case.
The Federal Court ruled competing airlines could seek repayment of money ‘if a state-run airport grants aid to an airline before it has been cleared under EU rules’.
If a civil case is successful, Ryanair would have to pay back millions of pounds.
Ryanair denies it has sought or been given state aid and said Lufthansa and airberlin are also ‘free’ to fly to secondary airports, rather than pay higher fees at major hubs.
Meanwhile, Ryanair has posted an online ‘tutorial’ in packing light in response to an incident earlier this month, when 100 Belgian students were removed just before take-off for refusing to comply with baggage charges.
Ryanair said the ‘tutorial’ on YouTube, should be added to universities’ curriculums to ensure students comply with the airline’s policies.
Lufthansa and airberlin have been given the go-ahead to sue Ryanair for getting what they claim are unfair subsidies in Germany.
Germany’s Federal Court of Justice said low fees charged to Ryanair for flying into ‘secondary’ airports Frankfurt-Hahn and Lubeck may breach European Union competition rules.
It says Lufthansa and airberlin can take their case to a civil court, overturning previous court decisions that they could not challenge the charges in a civil case.
The Federal Court ruled competing airlines could seek repayment of money ‘if a state-run airport grants aid to an airline before it has been cleared under EU rules’.
If a civil case is successful, Ryanair would have to pay back millions of pounds.
Ryanair denies it has sought or been given state aid and said Lufthansa and airberlin are also ‘free’ to fly to secondary airports, rather than pay higher fees at major hubs.
Meanwhile, Ryanair has posted an online ‘tutorial’ in packing light in response to an incident earlier this month, when 100 Belgian students were removed just before take-off for refusing to comply with baggage charges.
Ryanair said the ‘tutorial’ on YouTube, should be added to universities’ curriculums to ensure students comply with the airline’s policies.