Romania will seek more time from the European Commission to restructure flag carrier Tarom after the airline failed to meet the financial targets attached to a €95mn state aid package, acting Transport Minister Radu Miruţă said on July 28, according to G4Media. The new management will submit a first draft of a revised restructuring plan in early September, with a final version due by the end of September.

Tarom has not reported a profit since 2008, except for a profit from the sale of assets in 2024.

The restructuring plan, approved by the European Commission in April 2024 alongside the state aid, initially requires Tarom to demonstrate viability by the end of 2026. Failure to do so could result in the Commission withdrawing the aid and potentially push the airline into bankruptcy, unless the Commission agrees to a new restructuring calendar.

Romania will argue that high fuel prices and delays in aircraft deliveries affected Tarom's ability to meet the original plan, Miruţă said. The government will quickly formally notify the European Commission that the airline has failed to meet its targets and commit to submitting the revised strategy in September.

Tarom's new chief executive officer, Cristian Anghel, will prepare the notification and revised plan, with the Transport Ministry endorsing the documents. Miruţă did not disclose details of the proposed changes.

Tarom missed the restructuring plan's targets in 2025 and has continued to deviate from its projected financial trajectory this year. The airline reported a €30mn loss in the first eight months of 2025, against a planned €5mn net profit, while EBITDA was negative at €9mn compared with a projected positive €30mn.

In the autumn of 2025, the airline attributed its difficulties to intensifying competition from low-cost carriers, geopolitical tensions affecting airspace and passenger flows, supply-chain disruptions, aircraft delivery delays and higher maintenance costs. Tarom also said the restructuring programme limits its ability to adjust its routes and fleet in response to competitors.

In October 2025, Tarom notified the European Commission that it was missing its financial forecasts. The company subsequently recorded a RON186mn loss in 2025, according to figures cited by former vice prime minister Oana Gheorghiu in June, compared with a RON2.38mn gross profit forecast in its budget.

"Tarom is in a restructuring process approved by the European Commission. This process is not on schedule for reasons, some objective, some less objective," Gheorghiu said in April. Under the revised restructuring framework, Tarom was expected either to secure a partner willing to finance the continuation of the programme or proceed with an orderly closure, according to a government document published by Economedia at that time.

Miruţă, who became transport minister after the Social Democratic Party (PSD) withdrew from the government at the end of April, said at that time he would assess the airline's situation. The government was subsequently dismissed within days, however, and its priorities shifted during the interim period.

In July, Miruţă dismissed Tarom chief executive officer Bogdan Costas over the failure to deliver a revised restructuring plan and appointed Anghel to prepare the document for the European Commission and revise the airline's 2026 financial projections.