Talks with Polish Airline LOT to take over Condor, part of the now defunct Thomas Cook Group, are looking to grind to a halt amidst the current drop in domestic and international travel owing to COVID-19 restrictions.
Having previously rescued the struggling carrier with a €380 million (US$415 million) state bridging loan to allow the carrier to continue operating, the German government is now looking to privatize Condor on a short-term basis until the aviation industry recovers from its currently precarious situation.
LOT had offered €300 million (US$328 million) for the carrier which has the potential to cater for up to 20 million travelers a year. The deal with LOT was a long way from being watertight as there were problems relating to certain financial guarantees that the German government was not prepared to accept.
It is believed that only last week Condor approached the German government for a further loan, this time for €250 million (US$275 million), in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.
