BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission has approved 10.4 billion euros ($11 billion) in government aid for Air France-KLM during the pandemic, the latest move in a long-running court tussle over whether the support was legal.

The aid from the Dutch and French governments was initially approved in 2020 but the EU's General Court subsequently annulled it twice following a complaint by Ryanair.

"The Commission has re-assessed the measures with the Air France-KLM Group as the beneficiary of both the French and Dutch measures and come to the conclusion that they would also be compatible with the COVID Temporary Framework or directly with the Treaty", the Commission said in a statement on Wednesday.

The Franco-Dutch airline group said in a statement it welcomed the Commission's decision, while noting the aid was still the subject of continuing legal proceedings.

($1 = 0.9243 euros)

(Reporting by Charlotte Van Campenhout and Alban Kacher; Editing by Louise Heavens and David Holmes)