Lufthansa to buy parts of bankrupt Air Berlin

BERLIN — Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr said Thursday that the airline will sign an agreement to buy large parts of the bankrupt carrier Air Berlin.

Lufthansa would take over 81 planes from Air Berlin for its main brand and lower-cost Eurowings operation. Air Berlin said Lufthansa would pay about $250 million for Air Berlin assets, enabling it to repay a credit from the German federal government.

Air Berlin declared bankruptcy in August following years of losses.