Lauda sells to Ryanair

RyANAIR is buying a majority stake in a fledgling Austrian airline founded by ex-Formula One champion Niki Lauda as it looks to take off as a major player in Germany and Austria.

The low- cost airline will buy a 24.9pc holding in Laudamotion, which Ryanair will increase to 75pc ‘as soon as possible’. Laudamotion was formed out of Niki, which collapsed last year when its parent company Air Berlin went bust. The airline flies to tourist destinations from Germany and Spain using Airbus A320 planes.

Ryanair will lease six planes with crew to Laudamotion as part of the deal, increasing its fleet to 21 planes from the summer and to 30 within three years.