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European airlines have called on the European Commission to scrap an aviation deal with Qatar after the senior EU official who had overseen the negotiations was dismissed over corruption allegations.
In a letter to Commission president Ursula von der Leyen signed by the chief executives of the Lufthansa, Air France-KLM and SAS groups and seen by the FT, the airlines highlighted “unresolved concerns” in their latest salvo against the “open skies” pact.
The Commission fired the former director-general for transport Henrik Hololei last month at the conclusion of an investigation into accusations of wrongdoing, including accepting free flights from Qatar Airways.
“As long as questions of corruption, undue influence, and conflicts of interest remain unresolved, the agreement cannot stand untouched,” the airline CEOs said in the letter dated February 6.
“An agreement granting unrestricted access to the EU aviation market cannot remain provisionally applied when the negotiating conditions fail to meet the most basic standards of transparency and accountability.”
The letter, which was also signed by the heads of two aviation unions — the European Cockpit Association and the European Cabin Crew Association — called on von der Leyen to “immediately suspend” the deal.
The two lobbies and the European Network Airlines’ Association, whose members include Lufthansa and Air France-KLM, publicly called for the deal to be suspended earlier this month.
The call to scrap the agreement, which was agreed in 2021, comes as the European Union is trying to build closer links with Qatar.
The EU opened negotiations over a strategic partnership with the Gulf emirate last December. It is also seeking to facilitate more gas deals with the emirate.
Hololei, who had headed up the commission’s transport directorate since 2015, was moved in 2023 to a different department as a senior adviser after the corruption allegations were first reported.
A formal investigation into allegations that he had broken conflict of interest rules was opened in March 2025.
The Commission said at the end of January that it had “concluded a disciplinary procedure with regard to a senior official” and that “appropriate and commensurate measures had been taken”.
An EU official with knowledge of the situation said the person referred to was Hololei and that he had been fired after he took free flights from Qatar Airways for himself as well as family members.
“After nearly 22 years at the Commission, I am obviously disappointed,” Hololei told Politico after his dismissal, adding: “But I’m happy that this long process has finally come to a conclusion.” He could not be reached by the FT for comment for this article.
EU airlines have long been sceptical of the EU-Qatar air deal, which opened up European airspace to Qatar Airways, and have previously called for the deal to be suspended before the conclusion of the investigation.
European carriers argue that the Qatar deal and others like it open the door to unfair competition from non-EU airlines, who do not have to meet the same environmental standards or face limits on state support.
The agreement has been provisionally applied even though it has not been formally signed off by all EU member states.
Germany, France and the Netherlands are among the 12 countries that have yet to ratify the deal.
A Qatari government official said the country “works closely with the EU to support shared goals on a range of important issues”, adding that this was done “through established institution-to-institution channels” and that Qatar operates “in full compliance with international laws and regulations”.
“Any suggestion that Qatar has acted outside these frameworks is unfounded and categorically rejected,” the official said.
Qatar Airways declined to comment.
