Cartelization is suspected at Liszt Ferenc Airport

Mno.hu writes that the resigning managing director of state property Malév GH denounced the Turkish Celebi, responsible for the airplanes’ services on land, at the competition authority with the suspicion of cartelization. The option of forbidden cost agreement came up in connection with the offers for land service by British Airways, Iberia, Air Lingus and Alitalia.

The authorities are investigating the enterprises responsible for the land service of airplanes at the Liszt Ferenc Airport due to billionaire cartel suspicion. János Kisvári, the former managing director of Malév Ground Handling Inc. is believed to have reported on the case to the Economic Competition Authority in a letter dated on the 16^th of October. He also informed the Hungarian National Asset Management Inc., who own the enterprise.

According to this report, the Turkish owned Celebi Ground Handling Hungary looked up Malév GH several times with the suggestion that rival companies should conciliate the costs of the running tenders of British Airways, Iberia, Air Lingus and Alitalia.

The letter also attracts attention to the fact that the airport land service market turns over more than 15 billion forints every year, and the 48% of this is covered by Celebi, 41% by the onetime Malév subsidiary, while the remaining 11% by the British Menzies Aviation and the Hungarian Budport Handling Kft.

Wild Eastern conditions

“On the occasion of our personal meeting, the costs of different airplane types also came up. We didn’t take these information and the requests of Celebi into consideration at the Malév GH pricing. (…) Since the competition-limiting behaviour can only be successful when all market performers support it, it is rightly presumable that the above mentioned fellow competitors were all approached by the enterprise at issue” says the letter, according to which Celebi aims to get the serving rights of British Airways and Iberia.

It’s also a relevant information that Celebi has been the partner of British Airways, Iberia and Alitalia for some time, while Air Lingus was served by Menzies, because IAG Holding disgregated the portfolio at a former tender.

Anonymous sources from the airport told mno.hu that wild eastern conditions have characterised the land service market for some time, so the current cartel suspicion could be real. As one of them explained “the fellow competitors would most likely drown one and other in a bowl of water, but they occasionally make non-aggression pacts to keep their market positions”.

Another source highlighted that, while Celebi is moving in on the contracts of British Airways and Iberia, it would be vital for Malév GH to get Alitalia, as the enterprise has an 800 million minus, which could be helped with a long-term commission. So, if Kisvári’s report concerning the “marching” of Celebi is true, the other part of the deal could’ve been the non-aggression regarding Malév GH’s offer towards Alitalia.