Jet2 ‘not interested’ in buying Thomas Cook after Lufthansa says airline deal ‘unlikely’ – The Sun

JET2 have issued an official statement to say that they are "not interested" in buying Thomas Cook's airline or its high street shops.

It comes after Lufthansa's chief financial officer suggested that a deal to buy the debt-ridden travel company's airline could fall through.

Thomas Cook has been in talks to sell its airline as part of a restructuring process that could save the brand from collapse since earlier this year.

The travel company needs to find a buyer for its airline by September if it is to secure £300 million additional funding from banks, according to Travel Weekly.

Lufthansa confirmed a bid of Thomas Cook's German airline Condor earlier this year, and the deal could have been extended to include the travel company's other carriers.

However, the airline's CFO Ulrik Svensson told analysts last week that "it's unlikely we will get the deal".

In a statement to Sun Online Travel, the airline said: "We have made a non-binding bid for Condor, for its  long and short haul business, with the opportunity to extend it to all Thomas Cook Airlines.

"On our Capital Markets Day last week, our CFO commented that for several reasons it is unlikely that Lufthansa will be the winning bidder.

"He also pointed out that Eurowings will first turn itself around, before any further airline would be integrated into Eurowings."

Yesterday, Thomas Cook's rivals Jet2 were forced to issue a statement to say that they are not interested in buying Thomas Cook as an assurance to independent travel agents.

The company's CEO Steve Heapy said: "We would like to confirm that Jet2.com and Jet2holidays have no interest in either Thomas Cook's airline or Thomas Cook's retail business."

The statement came in response to speculation within the travel industry that Jet2 might be interested in buying part of the Thomas Cook business.

While Lufthansa was the most prominent contender, it was not the only potential buyer for Thomas Cook's airlines.

Who might buy Thomas Cook's airline?

Thomas Cook is said to still be in talks with several potential buyers for its airline.

Earlier this year, Portuguese airline Hi Fly made a non-binding offer for the airline.

Triton, a private equity firm, also submitted a bid for the company's operations in the Nordic countries.

Another private equity firm, Triton, a private equity firm, also submitted a bid.

Virgin Atlantic is said to be interested in Thomas Cook's long haul routes, which would include Brit favourite destinations such as Mexico's Cancun and Orlando in the US.

Thomas Cook reiterated a statement that the company issued alongside its half year results in May: "Following the announcement of the strategic review of our Group Airline in February, we have received multiple bids.

"We are currently assessing the bids received, including for the whole, and parts, of the Group Airline.

"We will consider all options to enhance value to shareholders and intensify our strategic focus and we will provide an update on this process in due course."

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