Air Europa denies paying PM's wife for help with 475m rescue loan at height of Covid
The accusations come from two figures at the centre of the wider corruption scandal threatening the ruling PSOE party, José Luis Ábalos and Koldo García
M. SAÍZ-PARDO / M. BALÍN
MADRID.
Friday, 5 December 2025, 22:29
Air Europa has strongly denied accusations that Begoña Gómez, wife of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, may have received up to 1 million euros for her involvement in securing the government's 475-million- euro bailout loan for the airline during the Covid-19 crisis.
The accusations come from two figures at the centre of the wider corruption scandal threatening the ruling PSOE party, José Luis Ábalos and Koldo García.
In an official statement, the airline, part of the Globalia group, clarified that neither the company nor any member of the owning Hidalgo family had contact with Gómez regarding the bailout, stressing that the process adhered to all legal regulations. Ábalos, in multiple interviews, had implied Gómez played a key role in securing the financial aid.
