Case T-494/21: Judgment of the General Court of 20 December 2023 — Ryanair and Malta Air v Commission (Air France-KLM and Air France; COVID-19) (State aid — Aid granted by France to Air France and Air France-KLM in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic — Recapitalisation — Decision declaring the aid compatible with the internal market — Action for annulment — Locus standi — Substantial adverse effect on the applicant’s position on the market — Admissibility — Determination of the beneficiary of the aid in the context of a group of companies)
Date: 2023-12-20
Institutions: General Court
Subjects: France, State aid, aid to undertakings, airline, capital increase, control of State aid, coronavirus disease, epidemic, equal treatment, freedom to provide services, right of establishment








C_202401859EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
Series C













C/2024/1859


11.3.2024





Judgment of the General Court of 20 December 2023 — Ryanair and Malta Air v Commission (Air France-KLM and Air France; COVID-19)
(Case T-494/21) (1)

(State aid - Aid granted by France to Air France and Air France-KLM in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic - Recapitalisation - Decision declaring the aid compatible with the internal market - Action for annulment - Locus standi - Substantial adverse effect on the applicant’s position on the market - Admissibility - Determination of the beneficiary of the aid in the context of a group of companies)
(C/2024/1859)
Language of the case: English

Parties


Applicants: Ryanair DAC (Swords, Ireland), Malta Air ltd. (Pietà, Malta) (represented by: F.-C. Laprévote, E. Vahida, V. Blanc, S. Rating, I.-G. Metaxas-Maranghidis and D. Pérez de Lamo, lawyers)

Defendant: European Commission (represented by: L. Flynn, J. Carpi Badía and C. Georgieva, acting as Agents)

Interveners in support of the defendant: Federal Republic of Germany (represented by: P.-L. Krüger and J. Möller, acting as Agents), French Republic (represented by: A.-L. Desjonquères, P. Dodeller, T. Stéhelin, B. Fodda and T. Lechevallier, acting as Agents), Kingdom of the Netherlands (represented by: M. Bulterman, C. Schillemans and J. Langer, acting as Agents, and by S. Corrijn, lawyer), Air France-KLM (Paris, France) (represented by: J. Derenne and D. Vallindas, lawyers), Société Air France (Tremblay-en-France, France) (represented by: J. Derenne and D. Vallindas, lawyers)

Re:

By their action under Article 263 TFEU, the applicants seek the annulment of Commission Decision C(2021) 2488 final of 5 April 2021 on State Aid SA.59913 — France — COVID-19 — Recapitalisation of Air France and the Air France–KLM Holding.

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:






1.


Annuls Commission Decision C(2021) 2488 final of 5 April 2021 on State Aid SA.59913 — France — COVID-19 — Recapitalisation of Air France and the Air France-KLM Holding;










2.


Orders the European Commission to bear its own costs and to pay those of Ryanair DAC and Malta Air ltd.;










3.


Orders the Federal Republic of Germany, the French Republic, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Air France-KLM and Société Air France to bear their own costs.






(1)  
            OJ C 391, 27.9.2021.


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/1859/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)