The General Court confirms that the aid granted by Austria to Austrian Airlines in order to compensate it for the damage resulting from the cancellation or rescheduling of its flights due to the COVID-19 pandemic is compatible with the internal market

(Source: Court of Justice)

That aid, having been deducted from the subsidies granted, in the same context, by Germany to
the Lufthansa group, which also includes Austrian Airlines, does not constitute overcompensation
in favour of that group

In June 2020, the Republic of Austria notified the European Commission of an individual aid
measure in favour of the company Austrian Airlines AG (‘AUA’). The aid notified, in the form of a
subordinated loan convertible into a subsidy for €150 million (‘the measure at issue’), was intended
to compensate AUA for the damage resulting from the cancellation or rescheduling of its flights due
to the imposition of travel restrictions and other containment measures amid the COVID-19
pandemic.

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