Ryanair has raised its stake in Aer Lingus to 29.82 per cent.
Ryanair, Europe's biggest low-cost airline, said in a statement it had bought an additional 3.5 million shares in Aer Lingus, bringing its total holdings in Ireland's former flag carrier to 159,231,025 shares.
Ryanair, which launched a hostile but failed takeover bid for Aer Lingus in 2008, said it had bought the shares yesterday but did not say how much it had paid for them.
Shares in Aer Lingus closed down 16 per cent at €1.15 in Dublin, while Ryanair ended 4.7 per cent lower at €2.61.