Ryanair to sue EU as EC investigates Ryanair

European discount carrier Ryanair has said that it will sue the European Commission, the antitrust regulatory body of the EU, because it failed to look into complaints about state aid given to Air France and Lufthansa.

Ryanair alleges that Air France received discounted airport fees from the French government and that Munich airport in Germany is building a new terminal for Lufthansa, even while the airport loses money. Ryanair also accuses the EC of approving "mulitbillion bailout packages" for Alitalia, while Olympic Airways has benefited from "massive injections of state aid" from the Greek government.

At the same time, the European Commission has launched an investigation into government aid grants by Finland and Germany for regional airports - the kind that Ryanair typically uses. The EC ruled a few years ago that the airline received illegal aid at Charleroi Airport, in Belgium, and Ryanair had to pay part of it back.