Norton Rose has won a bumper instruction to advise Aer Lingus on Ryanair’s unsolicited E1.48bn (£1bn) bid for the Irish air carrier, in a boost to the firm’s rated aviation practice.

Norton Rose corporate finance partner Mark Bankes will lead the team advising the company alongside Aer Lingus’s regular corporate advisers Arthur Cox, being led by corporate finance partners Eugene McCague and Brian O’Gorman.