Air Berlin is bankrupt, the airline filed for bankruptcy on Tuesday, August 15, 2017. Major shareholder Etihad has sponsored the airline for a long time, but now they have put a stop to the flow of money. Etihad no longer wants to compensate for the company’s losses. The federal government steps in and provides a loan of 150 million euros . Germany wants to continue to allow its citizens to book holiday flights and Air Berlin’s flight operations are secured for three months. Air Berlin boss Thomas Winkelmann had only been with the company for a few months and had already had to file for bankruptcy.
Air Berlin boss Thomas Winkelmann continues to cash in despite bankruptcy
The boss of the airline does not have to worry about his salary, he continues to cash in heavily. His base salary per month is a whopping EUR 79,167 . In Berlin there are 251 working days a year, and Thomas Winkelmann earns more per day than a good worker does in a month. His daily wage is 3784.88 euros. Whether the Air Berlin boss works 8 or 10 hours a day, one can only dream of this hourly rate. Despite insolvency, Thomas Winkelmann retains his right to his annual base salary of 950,004 euros! It should also be mentioned that Winkelmann has only been with the company since February 2017. A short, exciting performance that is at least well paid.
If this news shocks you – it gets even harder: when we talk about the salary, we are only talking about the basic salary that Thomas Winkelmann gets in any case. Earnings can even double with bonuses. Creditors have to worry about their money, the federal government is stepping in, nobody knows how Air Berlin will continue. But Thomas Winkelmann can sit back and relax, his salary is secure. In the event of an ordinary termination, a bank guarantee of 4.5 million euros ensures that the bankrupt vulture remains rich.
Negotiations about Air Berlin
Talks have been going on for a few weeks about who will take over Air Berlin. Lufthansa is very popular. However, antitrust regulations also have to be observed, so that Lufthansa may only be able to buy parts of the company. TUIfly, TUI’s holiday flight group, is also interested in at least taking over the holiday flight routes. But the low-cost airline Easyjet and Thomas Cook’s holiday airline Condor are also showing interest in the talks. The Air Berlin subsidiary Niki is also to be taken over. One can only hope that the salaries of Air Berlin’s 8,500 employees are as secure as Thomas Winkelmann’s wages. Hopefully the negotiations will go well so that the employees can join the airline and keep their jobs.