Lufthansa has moved to mount a full takeover of Brussels Airlines after signing a deal to buy a 45 per cent stake for €65 million.

The move comes as the airline industry is facing great pressure to consolidate amid soaring fuel costs and the global economic slowdown.

The German carrier has the right to buy the remaining 55 per cent stake in 2011 at a price not exceeding €250 million, depending on the airline’s performance by that date.

Lufthansa, which also owns Swiss International Airlines, said that Brussels Airlines would continue to operate largely independently.

Brussels Airlines has been operating for only a year after it was formed from the merger of the budget Virgin Express airline and SN Brussels Airline, the successor to Sabena, the Belgium flag carrier which went bankrupt seven years ago.

Lufthansa, which employs 105,000 people, said it saw substantial synergies from taking a holding in Brussels Airlines, which employs 3,000, and that there would be double digit multi million euros savings within three years.

Last year Lufthansa carried 63 million passengers and had a fleet of 513 aircraft while Brussels Airlines carried 5.8 million passengers and operated 49 planes.

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