Insolvent Air Berlin confirmed Monday it was negotiating with German airline giant Lufthansa and Britain's EasyJet to sell off parts of its business, offering hope for the future of its 8,000 employees and 140 aircraft. "Negotiations with Lufthansa AG and the British airline EasyJet will now continue until 12 October," the firm said in a statement following a board meeting.
Technical details around winding up the carrier to be thrashed out in the coming weeks and any final deal will need to be approved by European regulators. EasyJet is interested only in parts of the passenger airline, while Lufthansa's bid includes subsidiary LGW and Austrian airline Niki as well as parts of Air Berlin.
At stake are the carrier's 140 leased aircraft - including those wholly owned by Niki - coveted landing and takeoff slots at German airports, some prime Berlin real estate and the livelihoods of thousands of employees. "We are on the way to achieving good job prospects for around 80 percent of our colleagues with our bidders," Air Berlin chief executive Thomas Winkelmann said.
The company has some 8,600 employees, including part-time workers, according to DPA news agency. Air Berlin suffered recently as huge numbers of pilots called in sick in a protest action sparked by the uncertainty over looming job losses.
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