Plus Ultra president Julio Martínez Sola said former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero was connected to the airline’s efforts to obtain a €53 million state bailout during the Covid-19 crisis. Testimony and documents described in reporting on the case say the airline sought help from Zapatero and businessman Julio Martínez Martínez to advance its application. Spain’s Council of Ministers authorized the financing on 9 March 2021, with state holding company SEPI administering the operation through the Fondo de Ayuda a la Solvencia de Empresas Estratégicas (FASEE). The investigation remains open, and the testimony does not by itself establish that Zapatero intervened in SEPI’s formal decision.
Martínez Sola’s account traces the contacts to April 2020, after Plus Ultra shareholder Rodolfo Reyes Rojas advised him to seek help. Martínez Sola said he was put in touch with Zapatero, who directed further discussions to Martínez Martínez, administrator of relevant analysis. Plus Ultra later signed a consultancy agreement with the company, providing for €5,000 a month plus VAT for advice related to the bailout application.
The support package comprised a €19 million ordinary loan and a €34 million participative loan. Information from the latest FASEE accounts cited by ABC, repayment of the ordinary loan was scheduled to begin in 2026, while the participative loan was due by the end of 2028. Plus Ultra was one of six airlines to receive support from the fund, which distributed €890 million to Spanish carriers affected by the collapse in air travel during the pandemic.
Martínez Sola’s testimony also addressed payments to companies linked to Martínez Martínez. The article puts the total at €527,000, covering consultancy services and business-class airline tickets; other reporting puts the amount at approximately €530,000, or about 1% of the bailout. Martínez Sola reportedly said he could not identify a specific intervention by Zapatero at SEPI. He explained that the payment had been made “in case” contacts associated with the former prime minister had helped the application. Martínez Martínez, in testimony reported by Spanish media, acknowledged compensation connected to the bailout while saying: “What I genuinely do not know is what was done with SEPI.”
Judge José Luis Calama of Spain’s Audiencia Nacional is investigating whether the award was connected to alleged money laundering and influence peddling, among other possible offenses cited in reporting. The case remains at the investigative stage, and the allegations have not been established as judicial findings. The inquiry covers the alleged payments and the circumstances surrounding the €53 million award. It does not determine that the bailout itself was unlawful.
Former SEPI officials have attributed the eligibility assessment to external technical and financial work. Reports by Daiwa Corporate Advisor and Deloitte were described as favorable. Spain’s State Aviation Safety Agency (AESA) also raised no objections to the aid. The airline was assessed against FASEE requirements that included maintaining its equity balance in 2020 and presenting a viable recovery plan. It also had to operate in a sector considered strategic. The article reports that the Tribunal de Cuentas and IGAE reviewed aspects of the funding. It also names the National Accounting Office and the European Commission as having reviewed aspects of the funding, and reports that in June 2024 the EU Court of Justice dismissed Ryanair’s appeal against the FASEE aid.
The bailout became a political flashpoint amid scrutiny of Plus Ultra’s Venezuelan capital links and the role of intermediaries. The company’s board included Venezuelan executives, while investigations in France and Switzerland raised concerns about possible money laundering. Plus Ultra has also reported former board members in Venezuela over the alleged unauthorized use of company funds.
For more background on the controversy surrounding Zapatero’s involvement and the commission arrangements in the Plus Ultra bailout, see this related coverage: Court receives written admission on ex-president’s role in airline rescue.
Founded in 2015 with Venezuelan investment, Plus Ultra operated a small fleet connecting Spain with Latin America. Pandemic-era financial pressure led the airline to seek state support after banks declined to provide loans. The company’s accounts showed a 47% increase in revenue in 2019 and a workforce of 345. SEPI cited the airline’s passenger numbers and strategic role in explaining the aid, although its overall market share was modest. Plus Ultra is now seeking a buyer amid financial pressure and the continuing judicial investigation, as repayment obligations approach.
