Joined Cases C-164/15 P and C-165/15 P: Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 21 December 2016 — European Commission v Aer Lingus Ltd, Ryanair Designated Activity Company, Ireland (Appeal — State aid — National tax on air transport — Application of differentiated rates — Lower rate for flights to destinations no more than 300 km from the national airport — Advantage — Selective nature — Assessment where the fiscal measure is likely to constitute a restriction on the freedom to provide services — Recovery — Excise duty)
Date: 2016-12-21
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: Ireland, State aid, air transport, carriage of passengers, charges for use of infrastructure, control of State aid, excise duty, freedom to provide services








C_2017053EN.01000901.xml










20.2.2017   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 53/9





Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 21 December 2016 — European Commission v Aer Lingus Ltd, Ryanair Designated Activity Company, Ireland
(Joined Cases C-164/15 P and C-165/15 P) (1)

((Appeal - State aid - National tax on air transport - Application of differentiated rates - Lower rate for flights to destinations no more than 300 km from the national airport - Advantage - Selective nature - Assessment where the fiscal measure is likely to constitute a restriction on the freedom to provide services - Recovery - Excise duty))
(2017/C 053/11)
Language of the case: English

Parties


Appellant: European Commission (represented by: L. Flynn, D. Grespan, T. Maxian Rusche and B. Stromsky, acting as Agents)

Other parties to the proceedings: Aer Lingus Ltd (represented by: K. Bacon and A. Robertson QC, and by D. Bailey, Barrister, instructed by A. Burnside, Solicitor), Ryanair Designated Activity Company, formerly Ryanair Ltd (represented by: B. Kennelly QC, I.-G. Metaxas-Maragkidis, dikigoros, and E. Vahida, avocat), Ireland (represented by E. Creedon, J. Quaney, and A. Joyce, acting as Agents, and by E. Regan, Senior Counsel, and B. Doherty, Barrister-at-Law)

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:






1.


Sets aside the judgments of the General Court of the European Union of 5 February 2015, Aer Lingus v Commission (T-473/12, not published, EU:T:2015:78), and Ryanair v Commission (T-500/12, not published, EU:T:2015:73), in so far as they annul Article 4 of Commission Decision 2013/199/EU of 25 July 2012 on State aid Case SA.29064 (11/C, ex 11/NN) — Differentiated air travel rates implemented by Ireland, in so far as that article ordered that the aid be recovered from the beneficiaries in an amount which is set at EUR 8 per passenger in recital 70 of that decision;










2.


Dismisses the cross-appeals;










3.


Dismisses the actions brought by Aer Lingus Ltd and Ryanair Designated Activity Company for annulment of Decision 2013/199;










4.


Orders Aer Lingus Ltd and Ryanair Designated Activity Company to bear their own costs and to pay the costs incurred by the European Commission both before the General Court of the European Union and in the proceedings before the Court of Justice of the European Union;










5.


Orders Ireland to bear its own costs.






(1)  OJ C 205, 22.6.2015.