Today, Monarch – the bankrupt UK airline – has won an appeal to retain the rights over its airport slots at London Gatwick and London Luton airports. On November 8, a high court ruled that without an AOC the airline lost rights to the slots then valued to be as much as £60 million. The ruling sparked an industry-wide debate over the ownership of slots in the UK specifically and what an airline was worth if slots could no longer be considered “assets”. Although that debate has evaporated with this ruling, the question is still valid – should airlines who receive slots for free consider them as such valuable assets intrinsic to the value of the airline? Answers in an email…
UK court rules in favour of Monarch
