The creditors committee charged with overseeing Air Berlin (1991)'s bankruptcy proceedings have named Lufthansa Group and easyJet (London Luton) as possible buyers for the carrier’s operations.

A statement issued last week states negotiations with the parties are expected to last three weeks with the hope that a final can be reached by October 12.

According to the Bild am Sonntag newspaper, sources close to developments indicate Lufthansa's bid is said to amount to EUR300 million of which EUR200 million would be used to buy Air Berlin including its Niki (Austria) (Vienna) production unit and its regional carrier LGW - Luftfahrtgesellschaft Walter (Dortmund). The remaining EUR100 million will be used to maintain operations.

Though easyJet's offer focuses on other unspecified assets, it has confirmed that it is interested in “parts” of Air Berlin’s short-haul business.

The report indicates that even if a deal is reached with either of the two, it could be a further three months before it is implemented given the need for regulatory approval.

While talks over the sale of Air Berlin's operations proceed, the creditors' committee has since extended the deadline for proposals for Air Berlin's MRO unit, airberlin technik, until October 6.

As part of cost-cutting measures, Air Berlin has begun curtailing its longhaul operations. In addition to reducing service to select North American destinations, the German carrier has already confirmed its Caribbean network will be scrapped with effect from September 25. According to Reuters, the move is linked to return of a significant number of widebody aircraft being recalled by their lessors. ch-aviation is reliably informed that the aircraft in question are the ten remaining AerCap-owned and one Deucalion Aviation Funds-managed A330-200s with all eleven aircraft scheduled to be ferried to Lourdes/Tarbes, Zurich and ICAO!EGDX tomorrow, Monday, September 25, and Tuesday, September 26.

Once returned, Air Berlin's widebody fleet will consist of just five A330-200 aircraft. Earlier this month, the airline denied reports that the remainder of its longhaul network would be terminated from October 15 onwards, claiming no such decision had yet been taken.