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LONDON - THE near-bankrupt Italian airline Alitalia has sold some of its coveted landing slots at London's Heathrow airport for record prices, the Financial Times reported on Thursday.
The struggling carrier revealed on Monday that it had agreed to sell almost one quarter of its Heathrow landing slots for about £67 million (S$196 million).
The FT, which did not cite its source, reported that one pair of slots had been sold for a record £30 million, more than double the price two years ago.
The business daily added that the landing slots were sold to Continental Airlines, US Airways and British Airways.
Alitalia, beset by high operating costs and fierce competition from budget rivals, loses about one million euros (S$2.1 million) per day.
Last week, management at the carrier threw their weight behind a recue takeover plan proposed by Air France-KLM, the world's largest airline by revenues.
The Italian government owns a 49.9 per cent stake in Alitalia and is expected to come to a decision on the future of the company next month. -- AFP
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