European Competition Commissioner Mario Monti says the European Union's formal investigation into whether state-owned Finmeccanica received illegal state aid is "justified". This is the second step in the procedure against EU states charged with infringement of EU competition law. The probe - opened last year - is looking at whether Finmeccanica companies Agusta, Alenia and Aermacchi benefited from state aid. Monti says helicopter contracts directly awarded to Agusta without any international competition are under scrutiny.
Source: Flight International
