Niki Lauda’s new airline to cooperate with Lufthansa

Vienna : Austria’s Laudamotion will provide up to eight crewed aircraft to Lufthansa’s low-cost carrier Eurowings until the end of May, Niki Lauda’s repurchased and rebranded carrier said on Friday.

Lufthansa had planned to grow Eurowings by buying failed Air Berlin’s Niki unit itself but scrapped the purchase after the European Commission indicated it would veto the deal.

Niki was instead bought by its founder Lauda, who beat rival offers from British Airways-owner IAG and Irish low-cost giant Ryanair.

The three-times Formula One world champion then sold 75 percent of the carrier to Ryanair before the first planes took off again.

The basic agreement between Lauda and Lufthansa covers a little more than two months, not the whole summer season that runs to October.