THE strategy for the new Alitalia was unveiled late last month, with an unequivocal commitment by the new executive team and strategic investors to reinvent the airline.
The new Alitalia commenced operations on January 1, following the completion of equity investments by Etihad Airways and Alitalia’s existing shareholders. They are Luca di Montezemolo, chairman of Alitalia, Silvano Cassano, chief executive officer of Alitalia, and James Hogan, vice-chairman of Alitalia, and president and chief executive officer of Etihad Aviation Group, which holds 49 per cent stake in Alitalia.James Hogan said Alitalia’s future will rely on major change throughout the organisation. “In a market still beset by the continuing Eurozone crisis, anything other than rapid, decisive change is simply not an option.“This is the right strategy, with the right management team to lead it. “But there should be no doubts at all: we have made a commercial investment that must deliver a commercial return. “We’ve invested in the new Alitalia because we believe it can flourish again. It will only succeed if there is 100 per cent support from everyone. The coming months and next few years will not be easy, but if everyone pulls together as one team, Alitalia can grow again.”Hogan said that Alitalia’s major investors had set a clear deadline for the airline to deliver profitability by 2017.NETWORK• A new three-hub strategy in Italy. Milan Malpensa will increase long-haul services, while Milan Linate will increase connectivity with partner airline hubs. Rome Fiumicino will grow long-haul flying and continue to expand short and medium haul flying to maintain relevance to the Italian market.• Schedules across the network will be optimised to allow better connectivity, as well as increased codesharing with existing and new partners.• New routes from Rome include Berlin, Dusseldorf, San Francisco, Mexico City, Santiago (Chile), Beijing and Seoul, with increased flights to New York, Chicago, Rio de Janeiro and Abu Dhabi.• Alitalia will also add 13 weekly flights from Milan Malpensa, with daily services to Abu Dhabi, four flights a week to Shanghai, and additional flights to Tokyo.• There will also be increased connectivity with Etihad Airways’ hub in Abu Dhabi, with daily services from Venice, Milan, Bologna and Catania, as well as additional flights from Rome, all allowing onward connections to the Middle East, Africa, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, China and Australia.• Venice will be the only Italian airport, in addition to Rome Fiumicino and Milan Malpensa, from which Alitalia will operate services to Abu Dhabi with long-haul aircraft.COOPERATIONWhile exploring further opportunities to deepen the relationships with Skyteam members and in particular Air France/KLM and Delta, there will be a major new partnership with airberlin & NIKI, as well as increased connectivity with Etihad Airways. There are also plans to work more deeply with Air Serbia and Etihad Regional. GUEST SERVICESA new Customer Excellence Training Academy will deliver skills to all customer-facing staff, while customers will experience traditional Italian hospitality, new food service options, new-look lounges in Rome, Milan Malpensa and Milan Linate.BRANDINGAlitalia will launch a new brand and visual identity, covering aircraft, uniforms and all other customer touch-points. While the name will remain unchanged, the new branding will capture the essence of Italy. Etihad Airways is participating at ibtm arabia. Link to the Codeshare with Argentina: