€10m to be invested in carrier
The Russian Vneshekonombank is to inject a further €10m in the struggling Malev airline.
It is the second time this year that the bank, which took the running of the airline in January, has put money into the carrier.
In March it injected €9.9m into the carrier which has been struggling since privatisation in 2007.
It also provided a €20m loan facility to the carrier last month which will be partly used to buy new aircraft.
The new cash aid was announced by Anatoly Ballo, Malev's chairman and Vneshekonombank's deputy chairman was said the airline's problems had been made worse by the global downturn.
Vneshekonombank holds a 49% stake in AirBridge the owners of Malev since privatisation.
It took control after the airline did not repay €30m from a loan taken out last autumn.
AirBridge is a consortium of Russian investor Boris Abramovich of the now defunct AirUnion Alliance and two Hungarians, backed by Russia's KrasAir.
It paid the Hungarian Government 200m forint (€793,650) for its 99.95% stake in debt-ridden carrier.
KrasAir, a state-owned Russian carrier, went bankrupt last year.
Malev's board of directors has approved the airline's budget plan for 2009, but details would be published only after the company's employees are told, Malev officials said.
Mr Ballo said: "The Board requested the management to prepare a three-year business plan to enable Malev's positive performance."
Mr Ballo said Malev, a member of the oneworld alliance, could make a profit in three years.
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