A group of Aer Lingus pilots has bought €17.8 million worth of shares in the airline at 10 cents more a share than the price being offered by Ryanair, a stock exchange submission showed today.
The move is the latest in a series of small stake-builds by various groups, including a pilots' pension scheme and businessman Denis O'Brien.
It lends weight to suggestions Ryanair is likely to have to raise its offer of €2.80 per share. Ryanair formally launched its bid for Aer Lingus yesterday but faces stiff opposition.
The Government, which owns around a quarter of the airline, has said it will not sell its shares, and Aer Lingus's board has rejected the offer.
A submission to the Irish Stock Exchange today showed a group called Tailwind Nominees Limited - made up of Aer Lingus pilots - bought 6.1 million shares at €2.90, bringing its holding in Aer Lingus to 1.7 per cent.
Another group, Irish Airline Pilots Pensions Limited, has also been building a stake and currently holds 2.3 per cent of Aer Lingus. The group bought most of the stake for €3.04 a share.
Ireland 's pensions regulator has voiced concerns with the pension fund's purchase. The regulator noted last week that there were "clear regulations" requiring pension funds to avoid accumulating risk by ensuring investments are well diversified.
Shareholders have until November 13th to accept Ryanair's offer, which values Aer Lingus at €1.48 billion ($1.9 billion).
Key to the bid's success or failure will be the response of Aer Lingus's Employee Share Ownership Trust, which has a 12.6 per cent stake and has yet to say whether it will back the bid.