Monarch’s lucrative landing slots at risk

EMBATTLED British airline Monarch is racing to sell lucrative landing spaces before it risks losing them altogether.

Legal experts say the firm, which entered administration last Monday, may lose the right to sell its airport slots if its operating licence is revoked in the coming weeks.

This would strip Monarch of some of its most valuable assets, piling pressure on administrators at KPMG to reach a deal quickly.

The company’s slots at Gatwick are already subject to a bidding war between EasyJet and British Airways. They are thought to be worth as much as £60m. Monarch also holds slots at Luton, Birmingham and Manchester.

Aviation lawyer John Steel QC said the uncertainty around the airline’s operating licence meant administrators would need to move quickly. If Monarch’s licence was revoked, its slots would be handed back to independent body Airport Coordination Limited, Steel claimed.

Blair Nimmo, a joint administrator at KPMG, said he was ‘comfortable’ Monarch would complete a deal by the deadline.