EU appeals WTO Airbus ruling

The European Union is appealing against the World Trade Organisation ruling that aircraft maker Airbus received illegal state subsidies.

The watchdog's decision in June was the result of a complaint lodged by US rival Boeing, and is just the latest in a series of complaints and counter-complaints by the two companies over the state assistance vital to the economics of developing new aircraft. The WTO is set to rule in mid-September on claims against Boeing by Airbus.

The latest EU challenge covers several points, including the ruling that launch aid is an export subsidy. "This dispute is too important to allow the legal misinterpretations of the panel to go unchallenged," EU trade commissioner Karel de Gucht said.