Turkish Airlines Becomes Sole Known Bidder for Spain's Air Europa

Turkish Airlines is poised to become the sole bidder for a stake in Spanish airline Air Europa after Lufthansa and Air France-KLM both withdrew from the acquisition process. Turkish Airlines views Air Europa's network, particularly in Latin America and the Iberian Peninsula, as complementary to its own and is preparing a binding offer pending board approval. The sale process has been complicated by disagreements within Air Europa's controlling Hidalgo family and concerns about the deal's structure, especially given that IAG already owns 20% of Air Europa and previously failed to secure regulatory approval for a full takeover. Lufthansa acknowledged the difficulty of the deal and decided against further involvement after thorough analysis and negotiations. Air Europa is seeking to raise capital to repay government loans received during the pandemic, and the potential investment from Turkish Airlines could provide much-needed financial stability. The move would mark a significant entry of a non-EU carrier into the European airline market, amid growing pressure for consolidation in the region to compete with global rivals.