Greece has signed a preliminary agreement to sell its flag carrier, Olympic Airlines, to private New York-based investors to save it from certain extinction according to the Greek Minister of Transport, Michael Liapis. The agreement requires European Commission approval and sources close to the deal said many details still had to be worked out. In June Athens picked Olympic Investors-York Capital as the preferred bidder for the loss-making airline. Government sources said the investor group then proposed a US$158.3m offer for the airline, but a deal had been delayed since then to allow the group time to prove its credit worthiness.
