Niki Lauda submitted offer for insolvent airline Niki

VIENNA (Reuters) – Former motor racing driver Niki Lauda has submitted an offer for the insolvent Austrian airline Niki, which he founded in 2003, a spokeswoman for Lauda said on Thursday.

Niki filed for insolvency last week after Germany’s Lufthansa , which is buying other parts of Air Berlin , scrapped plans to buy Niki, grounding the airline’s fleet and stranding thousands of passengers.

“I can confirm that Niki Lauda handed in an offer (for Niki),” she said. “I can’t say how much he offered.”

Asked whether he made the bid alone or whether he teamed up with another interested party, she said she did not know.

(Reporting by Kirsti Knolle; editing by Francois Murphy)