Spain’s Iberia airline to launch bid for rival Spanair
16 February 2008Iberia, Spain’s flagship airline, plans to bid for Spanair, an ailing unit of Scandinavia’s SAS AB, the Spanish carrier said in a statement Thursday.
Iberia said in a regulatory filing that it planed to launch the bid in partnership with local Spanish transport company Gestair. Market analysts estimated Spanair’s worth could be around €800 million (US$1.17 billion).
If successful, a takeover of the country’s second-largest carrier would give Iberia a tighter grip on domestic flights, currently under siege from local and international low-cost airlines.
source: International Herald Tribune
