O’Leary confident over Aer Lingus bid

Ryanair is confident it can allay competition concerns about its latest bid for rival Aer Lingus, its CEO Michael O’Leary yesterday said, adding the budget airline was also seeking no more than a 25% stake in Stansted Airport.

Ryanair launched its third offer in five years for Aer Lingus in June, a €694m bid that the former state carrier has urged shareholders to reject, while it is also interested in buying a slice of London’s third-biggest airport.

Europe’s competition regulator last week launched an in-depth review of Ryanair’s latest Aer Lingus bid, signalling the airline may have to make big concessions to ease competition concerns or face fresh failure.