Dismissal of the appeal against the grant of a route concession to Swiss International Air Lines AG

Facts

The Darwin Airline SA (appellant) had a route concession for the air transport line Geneva-Lugano. The Swiss International Air Lines AG (respondent) applied for a route concession for the same line. The Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) granted the concession to Swiss, whereupon Darwin filed an appeal with the Federal Administrative Court. The Federal Administrative Court did not consider the appeal, as Darwin had no right to appeal.

Darwin filed an appeal with the Federal Court and requested that the judgment of the Federal Administrative Court be set aside and the matter be referred back to the FOCA for substantive consideration. Swiss and the FOCA requested that the appeal be dismissed.

Considerations

The Federal Court examined whether Darwin had a right to appeal. It found that Darwin could not be considered a material addressee of the ruling, as the FOCA's ruling had not definitively established its legal relationships or regulated its rights and obligations.

The court further investigated whether Darwin, as a competitor of Swiss, had a right to appeal. It found that the aviation law provisions did not create a specific close relationship…