Alitalia Will Make A Comeback This Year

Italy has a new flag carrier airline since October 2021, ITA Airways. ITA paid around $105 million for the rights to the Alitalia brand and website. But the new airline now has its own website and a new frequent flier program, called Volare (fly in Italian). ITA Airways also joined the SkyTeam alliance replacing Alitalia. So you would be right to think that Alitalia is gone for good.

But now, Alitalia will make a comeback, possibly this March. ITA Airways has revealed that it plans to use the Alitalia brand again. It’s just not clear how. The news comes from Alfredo Altavilla, ITA Airways President, who shared this information with the Transport Commission of Italy’s parliament.

“We purchased the Alitalia brand in October to ensure its continuity”, Altavilla said. “We plan to use it in similar fashion with other traditional airlines that have more than one brand within their portfolio, such as Transavia for KLM or Eurowings for Lufthansa”. Altavilla mentioned lowering costs while talking about Alitalia, but he said that the original airline will not come back as an low-cost option. It’s also not clear whether Alitalia will go back to flying long-haul routes, or whether it will be used for domestic and other short European flights. 

A final decision about Alitalia is expected on January 31st.