Jet2.com owner moves to protect British flying rights after Brexit

The owner of British budget travel airline Jet2.com is seeking to change its company rules to control its shareholder structure and thereby protect its flying rights after Brexit, as airlines grapple with the legal ramifications of Britain leaving the EU. Currently to operate as an EU airline carriers have to be majority owned by EU investors, but it is not clear what EU flying rights will be retained by British airlines after Britain leaves the European Union in March 2019. Many European airlines such as Ryanair, IAG and Wizz already have clauses in their articles of association that mean they can force non-EU shareholders to sell their shares in order to ensure that EU investors retain a majority. Dart Group, the parent company of Jet2.com, said on Thursday it planned to change its articles of association to bring it into line with other airlines and thereby help to protect its status and flying rights as a British carrier. Dart said it would set the permitted maximum of non-British shareholdings at 35%, adding it believes that currently, shareholdings by non-British nationals were below that level. "It is not currently known what impact the UK Government's triggering of Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union and the prospect of the UK leaving the European Union will have on Jet2.com's operating rights, if any," Dart Group said. "It may therefore be necessary to review such provisions when the regulatory landscape following Brexit becomes clearer." EU rules over ownership are fast emerging as a major point of contention as the aviation industry awaits further clarity on what rules for flying will look like after Brexit.<br/>