The Court of Justice of the European Union has dismissed a lawsuit by the low-cost airline Ryanair against the rescue package that the German government had granted to the holiday airline Condor after the bankruptcy of the Thomas Cook Group.

At that time, the German aviation company took refuge in a so-called protective shield procedure, because according to its own statements, it might otherwise have been drawn into the maelstrom of the Thomas Cook insolvency. The German federal government helped out with a cash injection of 380 million euros. This was granted in the form of a loan from the state-owned Reconstruction Loan Corporation.

Competitor Ryanair sued against the approval granted by the EU Commission, arguing, among other things, that no formal review procedure had taken place. Furthermore, Condor's financial difficulties would have been caused by an arbitrary distribution of funds within the Thomas Cook Group. The Court of the European Union did not follow the arguments of the low-cost airline and confirmed the approval of the EU Commission.

The matter is not finally off the table, however, because the judgment can be contested before the European Court of Justice. The low-cost airline is also conducting proceedings against other state aid that was subsequently granted to Condor.