London (AFP)

The airline Flybe admitted on Friday to having obtained a fiscal boost from the government of Boris Johnson, and discusses a loan with him, but denies having been subject to preferential treatment with its very controversial rescue.

Flybe admits having delayed payment of £ 10m in tax debt from UK tax office HMRC, AFP says, but will only last for a few months a company in difficulty.

The British press has so far reported that the regional company had benefited from a deferral of payment of more than £ 100 million, which is what it has to pay in one year for the tax on airline tickets.

Meanwhile, chief executive Mark Anderson says his group is discussing a loan with the government, while assuring that it is not state aid, according to statements reported on Friday by the BBC and confirmed to AFP by Flybe.

"We are in discussions with the government about a financial loan, a loan not financial aid, a commercial loan that is identical to any loan from a bank," he said in a message. addressed to Flybe staff.

"The government will not lend us if it believes that there is no credible plan," he said.

A loan that has the same characteristics as that provided by a financial institution may not contravene the state aid rules.

These words are revealed as the rescue of Flybe announced Tuesday evening by the government arouses dissatisfaction with several competing airlines.

The IAG group, owner of British Airways, on Wednesday filed a complaint with the European Commission for obstructing state aid rules.

Irish airline Ryanair has threatened to sue the government for failing to comply with competition law in the UK and the EU, and failing to comply with state aid rules.

The government has not officially mentioned any immediate aid measures to Flybe but simply promised an assessment of the air ticket tax by the time of the March 11 budget.

He justified his choice to rescue Flybe by the importance of the company in domestic services and the economic life of many regions.

According to the BBC, the owner of Flybe, namely the Connect Airways consortium, consisting of Virgin Atlantic, the investment company Stobart and the Cyrus fund, has agreed to invest 30 million pounds.

"The reality (...) is that we were in worse shape than what the shareholders thought," admits the boss of Flybe.

© 2020 AFP