Spain’s judicial investigation into the Plus Ultra airline bailout examines alleged irregularities surrounding a €53 million rescue approved in March 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The support was granted through the Fondo de Ayuda a la Solvencia de Empresas Estratégicas (FASEE), administered by the state holding company SEPI. Police reports cited in the case say former prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero was involved in efforts to secure the payout. The airline sought a “100% guarantee” that the funds would be delivered before technical assessments were complete. These allegations remain under investigation and are not judicial findings of liability.
The proceedings are led by José Luis Calama, examining judge at Spain’s Audiencia Nacional. Investigators have examined chats and emails, along with financial records concerning contacts among Zapatero, his presidential secretary Gertrudis, and Julio Martínez Martínez, administrator of relevant analysis, described in reporting as an intermediary. In testimony to Calama, Martínez said he passed on information about Plus Ultra’s financing needs to Zapatero: “I always conveyed to President Zapatero the things I was told that were impressive” in the loan application process. His account is evidence submitted in the investigation, not an established conclusion about Zapatero’s conduct.
The UDEF, Spain’s Unidad de Delincuencia Económica y Fiscal, is examining financial movements and relationships among companies connected to the case. Its reports describe alleged efforts to use political contacts to help the rescue and investigate whether money linked to the operation was diverted or laundered. The airline’s owner has also reportedly explained to the judge a payment of around €500,000 to people in Zapatero’s wider circle. That payment is under examination and, by itself, does not establish an unlawful transaction.
The investigation has also examined financial routes considered during efforts to secure support, including an ICO loan through Banco Santander and the eventual application to the FASEE, managed by SEPI. The original article’s account also links major shareholder Rodolfo Reyes to attempts to influence the Ministry of Transport through legal and political contacts, including people close to former minister José Luis Ábalos and Koldo García. Those claims form part of the allegations being investigated. Separately, Dutch financier Simon Lendeert Verhoeven denied knowing about the rescue or participating in laundering public money received by the airline. Police reports have described him as an alleged financial operator connected to efforts to obtain the funding.
Zapatero is among the individuals identified in reporting on the investigation. The case concerns alleged influence-peddling and document falsification, as well as claims of criminal organization and money laundering, alongside other accusations described in the proceedings. The investigation has not produced a final judgment establishing criminal responsibility. Investigators are examining the process that led to the March 2021 award and the subsequent movement of funds. Plus Ultra was also reported in October 2026 to be seeking a buyer amid financial difficulties.
As part of the continuing inquiry, Judge Calama ordered the Subdirección General de Patrimonio del Estado to provide records of institutional gifts delivered to the Presidency of the Government during the 2004-2008 and 2008-2011 legislatures. The request sought an acceptance and allocation record dated March 2012 within two days. It also relates to jewelry seized by the Policía Nacional from Zapatero’s office. The records request is an investigative step and does not itself establish a connection between the gifts or jewelry and the airline rescue.
The investigation comes amid heightened scrutiny of public fund management in Spain. Recent incidents, such as the disruption of a minute of silence for Venezuela’s earthquake victims during a Spain-Uruguay match in Guadalajara, have also drawn attention to the intersection of politics and public events. For more on the public reaction to that incident, see the report on the controversy at the Spain-Uruguay match in Mexico.
The Plus Ultra case has raised questions about transparency and accountability in the use of strategic rescue funds. The FASEE was designed to support companies considered impressive to the national economy during crises. The investigation is examining the award to Plus Ultra alongside allegations about political contacts and later financial activity. Its outcome may affect oversight of public financial support in Spain.
