Judgment of the General Court of 17 February 2021, Ryanair v Commission, T-238/20

• Date: 17 February 2021

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Judgment of the General Court (Tenth Chamber, Extended Composition) of 17 February

2021

Case T-238/20

Ryanair v Commission

State aid – Air transport market in Sweden, from Sweden and to Sweden – L oan guarantees to support

airlines amid the Covid-19 pandemic – Decision not to raise any objections – Temporary Framework for

State aid measures – Measure intended to remedy a serious disturbance in the economy of a Member

State – Free provision of services – Equal treatment – Proportionality – Criterion of holding a licence

issued by the Swedish authorities – Failure to weigh the beneficial effects of the aid against its adverse

effects o n trading conditions and the maintenance of undistorted competition – Article 107(3)(b) TFEU –

Ratio legis – Duty to state reasons

In April 2020, Sweden notified the European Commission of an aid measure in the form of a loan

guarantee scheme aimed at supporting airlines holding a Swedish operating licence

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amid the Covid-

19 pandemic (‘the loan guarantee scheme’). More particularly, that scheme is aimed at airlines which,

on 1 January 2020, held a Swedish licence to conduct commercial activities in aviation, with the

exception of airlines operating unscheduled flights. The maximum amount of the loans guaranteed

under that scheme is five billion Swedish kronor (SEK), and the guarantee must be granted until 31

December 2020 for a maximum of six years.

After finding that the notified scheme constituted State aid within the meaning of Article 107(1) TFEU,

the Commission assessed the aid in the light of its communication of 19 March 2020, entitled

‘Temporary Framework for State aid measures to support the economy in the current COVID-19

outbreak’.

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By decision of 11 April 2020,

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the Commission declared the notified scheme compatible

with the internal market in accordance with Article 107(3)(b) TFEU. Under that provision, aid intended

to remedy a serious disturbance in the economy of a Member State may be regarded as compatible

with the internal market.

The airline Ryanair brought an action to annul that decision, which is, however, dismissed by the

Tenth Chamber (Extended Composition) of the General Court of the European Union. In that context,

that Chamber examines for the first time the legality of a State aid scheme adopted in order to

address the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic in the light of Article 107(3)(b) TFEU.

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The

General Court also clarifies the relationship between the rules on State ai d and, on the one hand, the

principle of non-discrimination on grounds of nationality laid down in the first paragraph of Article 18

TFEU and, on the other, the principle of the free provision of services.

Assessment of the General Court

In the first place, the General Court carries out a review of the Commission’s decision in the light of

the first paragraph of Article 18 TFEU, which prohibits any discrimination on grounds of nationality

within the scope of application of the Treaties, without prejudice to any special provisions contained

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Licence issued in accordance with Ar ticle 3 of Regulation (EC) No 1008 /2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 September

2008 on common rules for the operation of air services in the Community (OJ 2008 L 293, p. 3).

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OJ 2020 C 91 I, p. 1, as amended by the Commission Communication, Amendment of the Temporary Framework for State aid measures to

support the economy in the current COVID-19 outbreak (OJ O 2020 C 112 I, p. 1).

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Commission Decision C(2020) 2366 final of 11 April 2020 on State Aid SA. 56812 (2020/N) – Sweden – COVID-19: Loan guarantee scheme to

airlines.

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In its judgment of 17 February 2021, Ryanair v Commission (T-259/20), the General Court examines the legality under Article 107(2)(b) TFEU of

a State aid scheme adopted by France with a view to addressing the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic on the French air transport

market.