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Lucas Floether declined to give the total amount raised by the
first auction, citing legal restrictions, but said the auction
website had received 1.2 million hits, with bids placed by
buyers in 45 countries.
"The high level of interest positively surprised us," he said in
a statement on Monday.
The auction is the first of four to raise cash for creditors of
Air Berlin, once Germany's second-largest airline, serving 30
million passengers a year, which filed for insolvency in August
after years of losses and burdened by heavy debt.
Its operations have been carved up among rivals, including
Lufthansa <LHAG.DE> and easyJet <EZJ.L>, but an inventory of
objects owned by the airline is being sold in a process
organized by the Dechow auction house.
A 4.8 meter-long model Boeing 737 plane went for 7,800 euros
($9,721), while items such as umbrellas were picked up for
around 30-40 euros. The chocolate hearts that Air Berlin used to
hand out at the end of each flight went for as much as 352 euros
for a box of 100.
In three further auctions that run until Feb. 16, fans can pick
up retro-style messenger bags, deck chairs and beach balls with
the Air Berlin logo, plus more model planes in various sizes.
It is not clear whether staff uniforms, including those worn by
pilots, can be sold. The auction house is currently in talks
with aviation authorities as to whether they can be offered to
the public because they have official markings and selling them
could contravene security regulations.
(Reporting by Victoria Bryan; Editing by Catherine Evans)
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