LUXEMBOURG (Reuters) - The European Court of Justice ruled on Wednesday that Ireland must require two of its leading airlines to pay back air travel taxes because the lower rates granted for shorter flights between 2009 and 2011 were illegal subsidies.
The court upheld an earlier ruling by the European Commission that Ryanair (I:RYA) and Aer Lingus [AERLI.UL], which is part of International Airlines Group (L:ICAG), had benefited from unlawful state aid.