Etihad Airways is not willing to sell its 2 per cent stake in Aer Lingus, the Irish flag carrier subject to a takeover bid by Ryanair, the Financial Times reported on Thursday.

Etihad president and chief executive James Hogan was quoted as saying 'we are not selling', giving his backing to Aer Lingus's current management and its strategy.

Hogan said in February that Etihad was interested in the possibility of purchasing the Irish government's 25 per cent stake in the carrier.

'We have invested due to our view of the Aer Lingus business model and the success the management are having implementing that model. We continue to support that management team,' he is quoted as saying.

Aer Lingus last month called on its shareholders to reject the lastest bid from rival Irish airline Ryanair, which values the company at 694 million euros ($868 million).-Reuters