AIR BERLIN PLC 
BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany on Wednesday rejected accusations by low-cost airline Ryanair (>> Ryanair Holdings plc) that Air Berlin's (>> Air Berlin Plc) filing for insolvency protection was aimed at preparing the German carrier for a takeover by Lufthansa (>> Deutsche Lufthansa).
An economy ministry spokeswoman also said a bridging loan of 150 million euros ($175.5 million) the government has granted Air Berlin did not breach anti-trust rules.
"I reject the accusation by Ryanair today that it was a staged insolvency application," the spokeswoman said. "We assume that the loan is conform with the law".
(Reporting by Joseph Nasr and Michael Nienaber; Editing by Maria Sheahan)
