Lufthansa’s planned entry into Latvian airline airBaltic has been approved by the German competition authority. The German airline group will now have a 10% stake in airBaltic, which has Riga as its central hub. Otherwise, airBaltic’s main shareholder remains the government of Latvia. The entry involves a sum of € 14 million.
Although the deal has been approved, the authority identifies competition concerns on several routes between Germany and the Baltic. But these are routes with small turnover, on which it cannot intervene. AirBaltic, with a fleet of 50 aircraft, mostly Airbus and Bombardier, flies to over 70 countries, primarily in the Middle East or destinations within the CIS countries, which are the countries formed after the breakup of the Soviet Union.
In 2024, airBaltic still posted a net loss of 118,2 million euros, despite revenue growth of 12% to 747,6 million euros. It also recorded a loss of € 29.3 million in the first quarter of 2025. Nevertheless, there are positive signs: for instance, revenue rose slightly by 0.3% to € 132.7 million, and the number of passengers carried increased by 9.6% to 1.3 million. In 2023, the number of passengers even increased by 36% to 4,5 million euros.
More deals to come?
Lufthansa already cooperates with airBaltic. For example, Lufthansa’s subsidiary, Brussels Airlines, rents aircraft with crews from the airline during the summer.
It also owns Austrian, Swiss, and Eurowings in addition to Brussels Airlines. As recently as January, Lufthansa acquired 41% of ITA Airways’ capital, with ambitions to increase its stake to 100%.
The German group is also interested in a stake in Spain’s Air Europa and Tap Air Portugal. IA Group, the parent company of British Airways and Iberia, was denied permission by the European Commission to acquire Air Europa last summer due to concerns about reduced competition in the Spanish market.
