Ship owner in new bid for Olympic

A new bidder has emerged for ailing Greek flag carrier Olympic Airways. Luxembourg-based Golden Aviation has submitted a letter of interest for Olympic's flight operations to government sale consultant Eteba Bank.

The Greek government, the airline's sole shareholder, is selling it piecemeal, split into divisions such as catering, flight operations and flight simulators/ training. Olympic Catering was sold earlier this month to supermarket chain Everest and in-flight caterer LSG SkyChefs for €16.1 million ($15.8 million).

Golden Aviation, owned by ship owner Stamatis Restis, is interested in Olympic's domestic and international routes. Its letter was accompanied by a letter of guarantee from Morgan Stanley in Zurich for €100 million.

The price for Olympic's flight operations and its two subsidiaries, Olympic Aviation and Macedonian Airlines, is thought to be about €150 million.

Source: Flight International