Ryanair has said it will appeal a court ruling that financial aid to establish a route between Strasbourg and London was illegal.
Reacting to the negative verdict yesterday, Ryanair's chief executive, Mr Michael O'Leary, said it was committed to restoring flights to Strasbourg and would appeal this decision all the way through the French courts and the European Court in Luxembourg.
"We have instructed our lawyers to appeal this decision which prevents the return of low-fares air travel to Strasbourg. We are confident that the European courts will in time recognise the benefits for consumers and the regions of low-cost air travel between Strasbourg and London," he said yesterday. Ryanair shares slipped lower initially after the ruling but recovered to end three cents better at €6.63 in Dublin yesterday. The airline is awaiting a decision from the European Commission on whether it received illegal state aid at Charleroi airport in Belgium.
The original court case was sparked by a complaint from Britair, a subsidiary of French national carrier Air France, which said it was forced to cancel its London-to-Strasbourg link as a result of unfair financial aid to Ryanair.
Strasbourg chamber of commerce had promised in June 2002 to give Ryanair €1.4 million to set up two daily round-trip flights from London to Strasbourg. The appeal court in Nancy on Thursday upheld a lower court's decision that payments by the authorities represented an improper use of public funds.
