Czech antitrust authorities have conditionally approved Pegasus Airlines’ €154 million acquisition of Smartwings and Czech Airlines, tying the deal to a remedy on the Prague–Antalya route. The Office for the Protection of Competition required Pegasus to transfer part of its summer-season slots to another carrier to preserve competition on the heavily contested leisure service.
The regulator identified the summer Prague–Antalya market as the main competition concern, where the combined group would otherwise hold a very high share. The slot divestment is designed to give a rival access to scarce airport capacity in Prague and Antalya and maintain effective competition on the route.
The approval was issued in late August and reported publicly on 11 September, but it was not yet final because the appeal period had not expired. Pegasus first disclosed the deal in December 2025 as part of its wider international expansion, and completion still depends on other regulatory steps beyond the Czech clearance.