BIDS FOR STRUGGLING French independent airline Air Liberté, were due to be deposited with legal administrators at a Paris court on 14 October. British Airways, Virgin Express and Corsair owner Nouvelle Frontiéres were all considering whether to make offers.
Foreign airline interest centres mainly on the valuable slots held by Air Liberté at congested Paris Orly Airport. British Airways, negotiating through its French subsidiary, TAT, has made it clear that the combined operations of the two would make it the second-largest airline in France.
Corsair president Jacques Maillot has put forward a proposal to take over first Air Liberté and another loss-making independent, AOM. This would align well with the French Government's preference for a "second" centre of privately owned airlines in France.
British Airways moved quickly to prevent a possible AOM take-over of Air Liberté by petitioning the European Commission's competition directorate on the grounds that AOM has a significant French Government stake "-which would involve an illegal use of state-aid", says the UK carrier.
With TAT and Air Liberté in its portfolio, BA would hold more than one-quarter of the 250,000 annual slots at Orly.
Source: Flight International
