Party proposes Air Europa become Balearics’ “public airline”

Més per Mallorca, part of the ruling coalition in the Balearic Islands, would like to see the Spanish government in Madrid “create a publicly managed airline through the acquisition” of Air Europa (UX, Palma de Mallorca) and then transferring control to the Mediterranean archipelago.

The party - part of a three-way coalition in Palma led by the regional branch of the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party, which is also in government in Madrid - said in a statement on its website on December 23 that it would initiate a debate on the issue in the Balearics’ parliament. It would propose, it said, a conversion into shares of the public funds already granted to the troubled carrier.

“The state has put on the table almost EUR475 million euros (USD538 million) in public money that must be used to save Air Europa, not turn it into a business opportunity for Iberia,” Més per Mallorca’s deputy spokesperson, Josep Ferrà, explained.

The new state-owned airline could retain its headquarters in Llucmajor, where its parent company Globalia is currently based, in this way “guaranteeing the preservation of as many local jobs as possible,” he added.

The “eco-sovereignty proposal” the party will issue for debate - which also calls for the transfer of powers in the islands’ ports and airports “to adapt to economic and environmental challenges” - warned that “a possible acquisition of Air Europa by Iberia would produce a de facto monopoly scenario in the Balearic Islands, making the offer of flights, routes, frequencies, and ticket prices almost completely controlled by a single company.”

In this sense, “the crisis suffered by Air Europa and the context of the crisis within the airline sector must be seen as an excellent opportunity to turn it into a viable public airline with a business model based on quality service, with reasonable prices, which can guarantee inter-island connectivity with the Peninsula and with Europe. It is time to overcome the model of privatisation and bailouts with public funds that has only benefited the economic elites,” Ferrà urged.