Turkish Airlines has not yet officially submitted to the European Commission its plan to join Air Europa's capital with a stake of more than 25% of the shares, a transaction valued at around 300 million euros.
As indicated by a spokesperson for the Community Executive to Europa Press, the Turkish airline has not yet registered any formal notification, neither under the European regulation on control of concentrations nor under the regulation on foreign subsidies.
Brussels only directly examines corporate operations of a larger size that reach the so-called Community dimension, which is determined based on certain turnover thresholds.
To exceed these thresholds, there are two alternatives. The first requires a combined worldwide turnover exceeding 5 billion euros and that, at least, two of the companies involved have a turnover of more than 250 million within the EU. The second contemplates a global turnover of more than 2.5 billion, along with additional conditions of minimum turnover in several Member States and for several of the participating companies.
Regarding the review times, the Community analysis can extend for more than 100 days if the initial phase and a second phase of in-depth investigation are chained.
In parallel, the regulation on foreign subsidies requires notification when operations exceed certain limits, such as a turnover in the EU of at least 500 million euros and financial contributions from third countries exceeding 50 million in the last three years.
In August 2025, once Air Europa accepted the binding offer from the Turkish company, Turkish Airlines estimated that the operation could be closed within a period of six to twelve months, a forecast that contrasts with the current situation and could delay the acquisition of approximately 25% of the Spanish airline, as reported by "ABC".