EU opens probe into Romanian state aid for airline Blue Air

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission said on Monday it had opened an in-depth investigation into the state aid given by Romania to ailing airline Blue Air Aviation.

"The Commission has concerns that the restructuring plan and the aid measures implemented are not in line with EU state aid rules," the European Commission said in a statement.

Last November, the Romanian government announced plans to take a majority stake in budget airline Blue Air over unpaid debt to the state.

The airline has been struggling since 2020, when it entered a debt restructuring agreement to survive the COVID-19 pandemic, taking a state loan worth 300 million lei ($66.9 million) and putting up 75% of its stock as a guarantee.

($1 = 4.4988 lei)

(Reporting by Bart Meijer; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)