Ryanair (FR, Dublin International) would be interested in acquiring airport slots currently held by Thomas Cook Group Airlines should they come up for sale.
Earlier this month, parent firm Thomas Cook Group began a strategic review of its airline subsidiary given plans to focus more on its more profitable own-brand hotel portfolio.
“If it goes that way and it gets broken up, are we interested in slots at certain airports? We would be," Kenny Jacobs, Ryanair's Chief Marketing Officer, told The Irish Times.
As previously reported, Ryanair currently has its sights set on Germania's slots at Berlin Tegel while its LaudaMotion unit is locked in a battle with Lufthansa Group's Eurowings (EW, Düsseldorf) unit over Germania Düsseldorf slots.
During a recent earnings call, Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary said the LCC was open to small scale mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in particular, small AOCs where it could "reverse some of its organic growth".
