Sale of Air Berlin as a whole not possible, says German deputy EconMin

A takeover of insolvent German airline Air Berlin as a whole to keep it operating will not be possible, German deputy economy minister Matthias Machnig said Saturday, pouring cold water on an airline investor's approach. "The model of Air Berlin as an independent airline has failed," he told German radio station rbb InfoRadio Saturday. Germany's Hans Rudolf Woehrl, who made a name for himself when he bought German airline Deutsche BA from British Airways for 1 euro, threw his hat in the ring for Air Berlin Friday and said he wanted to keep it flying after buying it. Talks on carving up Air Berlin, which said Tuesday it was filing for insolvency, started on Friday, with Lufthansa getting the first meetings ahead of other potential bidders. Earlier in the week, a source familiar with the matter said easyJet was among those in talks, and Thomas Cook's German airline Condor said it was ready to play "an active role" in Air Berlin's restructuring. Deputy Economy Minister Machnig said it would take several investors to offer Air Berlin and its employees a long-term future, reiterating that Lufthansa would not be the only buyer of the carrier's assets.<br/>