Ryanair would sell Heathrow slots if Aer Lingus deal is approved
It is believed that Ryanair might have sell valuable landing slots at Heathrow airport belonging to Aer Lingus if the new takeover deal is approved.
Reports said that Aer Lingus will have to transfer all but four landing slots at Heathrow airport if it is to merge with its Dublin based partner. Estimates show that the Dublin to Heathrow route is one of the busiest routs in Europe and it costs around €400 million. Ryanair has suggested it sells 20 of the 24 landing slots to British Airways in order to get an approval for the deal, according to some reports.
The European Commission had issued formal objections to a new deal by Ryanair to takeover Aer Lingus alleging that the combining of the two Dublin based carriers would impact competition climate. Aer Lingus and Ryanair, both believe that the deal is unlikely to be approved by the European regulators.
Ryanair has assured European regulators that there are radical remedies to address the concerns relating to lower competition. On the other hand, Aer Lingus indicated that the deal is headed for a failure. Ryanair already owns 30 percent of Aer Lingus.
Even if Ryanair gets an approval from the EU authorities, it will still have to get an approval from Lingus shareholders and staff before the takeover can be finalized.