Frankfurt - Merger talks among three small German airlines have collapsed, the Thomas Cook company said Monday. 

Thomas Cook, a German tourism group based near Frankfurt, said it had pulled out of months of talks and would continue to operate its own airline subsidiary Condor as an independent unit. 

Condor had been in talks to link up with Germanwings and TUIfly, creating an airline with more heft to compete with German flag carrier Lufthansa and the country's number-two airline, Air Berlin, on routes between Germany and foreign holiday destinations. 

"Condor is a strong and profitable company," Thomas Cook said in a statement. A merger would have been "unattractive." 

Thomas Cook owns a majority of Condor, with the Lufthansa group holding 25 per cent. 

TUI said from its London office that it would seek other alternatives for its TUIfly unit. 

Germanwings is a subsidiary of Eurowings, a company in which Lufthansa owns about half the stock. (dpa)