Can't shed any light on the rumour, but a couple of thoughts on the matter:
1) todays confirmation of the Easy / GO deal will have undoubtedly made the guys at Peel somewhat less enthusiastic about Finningley. Easy were the main proponent of the development and their existing relationship with Peel at LPL was believed to make them a strong favourite to get services off the ground in South Yorks. As of today Easy have a base down the road at EMA and it must be extremely unlikely that they will consider Finningley as a base if/when it opens.
2) ..I'm therefore not surprised that Peel might be considering an alternative to Finningley, but MAN seems unlikely. The whole business model at LPL has been designed to steal pax away from the full service guys at MAN. On the routes launched so far, particularly AMS & BFS, it has worked. Whilst there are examples in other businesses of subsideries competing with each other, the prospect of Peel owning both MAN and LPL just doesn't seem to fit. Peel could sell LPL of course, but would do so in the knowledge that as of today they would leave behind Europe's largest low-cost airline operating there, who are signed up to a long-term committment for future route development.
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