The title is not correct as the appeals court has not ruled that Ryanair's subsidies are illegal rather it ruled that it cannot return to Strasbourg until such time that a final decision has been made. The French news fails to mention that there has already been a decision in favour of Ryanair stating that the deal between Ryanair and Strasbourg does not constitute illegal aid and that Ryanair should return on the route as soon as possible. For more information on this you can check on the Ryanair website in the news section already two days ago, and you can check Reuters for an accurate account of the proceedings
As per the CRL case the commision was about to deliver their findings and they had even leaked to the press their negative views, only to have to pull back the last minute because it was advised by its legal team that their case would not stand in court (Luxembourg) if Ryanair appealed its decision. Do not think for a minute that the commision would be afraid of Ryanair and their threats to pull out of CRL if they knew that they were correct.
JP
