Niki collapses; Apollo Global Management buys Sun County Airlines; Airbus announces succession plan

Austrian airline Niki has grounded its aircraft after failing to find a buyer following the collapse of parent Air Berlin. The company has filed for insolvency protection after Lufthansa decided not to purchase the airline possibly connected to the European Commission’s “deep competition concerns” that if Lufthansa purchase Niki aircraft it would limit choice for air travellers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.The airline has left around 5,000 passengers stranded abroad, mostly in Majorca. Austrian authorities have been working to get them transferred to other flights. Meanwhile, in the USA, funds affiliated with Apollo Global Management have signed a definitive agreement