Today’s Airfare of the Day goes to Alitalia and their midweek business class promotional round trip fares between Madrid (MAD), Spain and Los Angeles (LAX), USA.

Remember to email or message us via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram with your airfare-related questions or discoveries!

In case you missed it!

Flight Review: Alitalia Business Class A330-200 [AZ602 FCO-JFK]

Fare Details:

Travel restrictions: No travel end date.
Sales restrictions:  Tickets must be issued on/before 13JAN 21.

• Fare: Alitalia (AZ) IX9P9EU MAD to LAX.
• Booking class: I.
• Price: from 1,366€ (871€ base fare + taxes & surcharges).
• Day/time restrictions: outbound permitted TUE through TUE; inbound permitted MON through WED.
• Advanced reservation/ticketing restrictions: required at least 90 days before departure.
• Minimum stay: until the first Sunday after departure.
• Maximum stay: 3 months.
• Stopovers: not permitted.
• Cancellations: charge 400€ for cancel.
• Changes: charge 300€.
• Airline’s COVID19 policy: access here.

Access here IATA’s COVID-19 Travel Regulations interactive Map for the most up-to-date information on entry requirements/quarantine rules for any destination you’re planning to visit.

Routing examples:

Price comparison:

Booking examples:

This fare can be booked on Alitalia:

Accruals:

Fare rules:

Download (DOCX, 30KB)

Today’s Airfare of the Day goes to Alitalia and their midweek business class promotional round trip fares between Madrid (MAD), Spain and Los Angeles (LAX), USA.

Remember to email or message us via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram with your airfare-related questions or discoveries!

In case you missed it!

Flight Review: Alitalia Business Class A330-200 [AZ602 FCO-JFK]

Fare Details:

Travel restrictions: No travel end date.
Sales restrictions:  Tickets must be issued on/before 10MAR 21.

• Fare: Alitalia (AZ) IX9P9EU MAD to LAX.
• Booking class: I.
• Price: from 1,335€ (871€ base fare + taxes & surcharges).
• Day/time restrictions: outbound permitted TUE through TUE; inbound permitted MON through WED.
• Advanced reservation/ticketing restrictions: required at least 90 days before departure.
• Minimum stay: until the first Sunday after departure.
• Maximum stay: 3 months.
• Stopovers: not permitted.
• Cancellations: charge 400€ for cancel.
• Changes: charge 300€.
• Airline’s COVID19 policy: access here.

Access here IATA’s COVID-19 Travel Regulations interactive Map for the most up-to-date information on entry requirements/quarantine rules for any destination you’re planning to visit.

Routing examples:

Price comparison:

Booking examples:

This fare can be booked on Alitalia:

Accruals:

Fare rules:

Download (DOCX, 30KB)

There has been news coming out of Italy of the fifth rebirth of the national airline of Alitalia that is supposedly renamed as ITA. The current Alitalia has been in administration since 2017, and the government has not been able to find a buyer.

The airline has lost €8 billion in the past four years. The Italian government has already used more than 10 billion euros to prop up the airline over the years (and there was an unfortunate and very costly investment from Etihad too).

You can access Alitalia here.

According to the Italian press, the latest plan is to form a mini-Alitalia by halving the number of planes from 90 to 45 and cutting the number of employees to 4,500.

The name of the new company is Italia Trasporto Aereo that is shortened to ITA. The government plans to restart the airline with a budget of €3 billion in April or May this year.

Conclusion

Alitalia, in all of its previous forms, has been a chronic money-losing airline.

Qatar Airways recently pulled the plug from Air Italy, formed from Sardinia-based Meridiana, which was supposed to be the main competitor to Alitalia.

Not sure what the airline’s fifth rebirth will be like after burning through €10 billion from the government + significant amount from Etihad through? I cannot see anything else coming out of this other than yet another restructuring by the middle 2020s.

At some point, you need to accept that the airline has been an utter failure and shut it for good.

Today’s Airfare of the Day goes to the SkyTeam transatlantic partners (AF/DL/KL/AZ) and their midweek business class excursion round trip fares between Spain (MAD/BCN) and several destinations in North America (ORD/SFO/YVR…).

Remember to email or message us via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram with your airfare-related questions or discoveries!

These fares are being discussed on FlyerTalk (access here).

Fare Details:

Travel restrictions: No travel end date.
Sales restrictions:  No sales end date.

• Fare: Delta (DL) ZS11CBNB BCN to CHI.
• Booking class: Z.
• Price: from 1,199€ (736€ base fare + taxes & surcharges).
• Day/time restrictions: outbound permitted TUE through THU; inbound permitted MON through WED.
• Advanced reservation/ticketing restrictions: required at least 180 days before departure.
• Minimum stay: until the first Sunday after arrival.
• Maximum stay: 12 months.
• Stopovers: 1 stopover permitted in each direction in AMS/PAR/MIL/ROM at 75.00€ each.
• Cancellations: ticket is non-refundable.
• Changes: changes permitted for reissue/revalidation.
• Airline’s COVID19 policy: access here.

Access here IATA’s COVID-19 Travel Regulations interactive Map for the most up-to-date information on entry requirements/quarantine rules for any destination you’re planning to visit.

Routing examples:

Price comparison:

Booking examples:

This fare can be booked on Delta:

Accruals:

Fare rules:

Download (DOCX, 30KB)

Today’s Airfare of the Day goes to Alitalia and their midweek business class excursion round trip fares between New York (JFK), USA and Cairo (CAI), Egypt.

Remember to email or message us via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram with your airfare-related questions or discoveries!

In case you missed it!

Flight Review: Alitalia Business Class A330-200 [AZ602 FCO-JFK]

Fare Details:

Travel restrictions: No travel end date.
Sales restrictions:  Tickets must be issued on/before 08SEP 21.

• Fare: Alitalia (AZ) IN3L76D7 NYC to CAI.
• Booking class: I.
• Price: from $1,989 ($1,331 base fare + taxes & surcharges).
• Day/time restrictions: -/-
• Advanced reservation/ticketing restrictions: required at least 7 days before departure.
• Minimum stay: until the first Sunday after departure.
• Maximum stay: 12 months.
• Stopovers: not permitted.
• Cancellations: ticket is non-refundable.
• Changes: charge $450.
• Airline’s COVID19 policy: access here.

Access here IATA’s COVID-19 Travel Regulations interactive Map for the most up-to-date information on entry requirements/quarantine rules for any destination you’re planning to visit.

Routing examples:

Price comparison:

Booking examples:

This fare can be booked on Priceline:

Accruals:

Fare rules:

Download (DOCX, 28KB)

There has been more information coming out of Italy and Brussels on how the Italian government plans to end the current misery of the loss-making Alitalia, which has been in administration since 2017, and form a new “national” airline of Italia Trasporti Aereo (ITA).

Brussels has given the green light for Italy to fund the new airline, but it cannot be merely a handover of assets from Alitalia to ITA, but they must be auctioned off. In addition, tickets issued for Alitalia flights past October 14, 2021, cannot be used for flights on the new airline.

You can access Alitalia’s website here.

Here’s what I have been able to gather from various Italian news sources & my thoughts and questions:

– The frequent flier program of Alitalia must be purchased by another party than ITA, but theoretically, the third party can resell it to ITA.

– ITA has indicated that it would build a new loyalty program from the start.

– The new airline can purchase through an auction the brand, aircraft, and other assets of Alitalia.

– What happens to award tickets issued on partner airlines on Alitalia’s ticket stock after the airline ends its operations?

– Only one-third of the current employees of 10,000+ will be employed by ITA that only needs roughly 2,750.

– Retains 85% of Alitalia’s slots at Milan’s Linate and 43% at Rome’s Fiumicino.

– Plans to operate 61 routes to 45 destinations, including New York, Boston, Miami, and Haneda.

– The airline intends to fly 74 destinations in 2025 and to Buenos Aires, Sao Paulo, Washington DC, and Los Angeles from summer 2022.

– ITA would start its operations with 52 aircraft compared to 118 currently with Alitalia. Only seven of the 52 planes will be long-haul ones.

– The new airline plans to have 105 planes by 2025, including 81 new ones (likely from Airbus based on news coming out of the negotiations today).

– It is unclear if the ITA will be part of the SkyTeam alliance.

– What is the two-letter airline code for ITA and its ticket stock number?

– Who refunds the tickets issued for flights after October 14, or who pays for rebooking on other airlines?

– ITA should have its website up by August, opening up reservations for flights from October 15.

– The new airline expects to become profitable in 2025.

Conclusion

It is an absolute mess, but I guess that the Italian government has finally concluded that funding Alitalia’s losses indefinitely is not a solution. Still, they cannot let the country be without a flag carrier.

It will be really rough start for the ITA, considering that the world is still not past the pandemic, and the fall and winter are never good for the airlines in the Northern Hemisphere.

I cannot see that the tickets issued by Alitalia would be suddenly worthless come October 15. The government will likely set up a fund that rebooks the affected passengers on other airlines or simply refunds the payments.

Starting a new frequent flier program from scratch that, at least from the start, won’t be part of any alliance is a momentous task.

We wish the new Alitalia, sorry ITA, out very best, but how could this succeed when all the other previous attempts of revitalizing the soon gone flag carrier have failed?

Today, Italia Trasporto Aereo (ITA) received an air operator certificate from Italy’s air regulator ENAC that cleared the airline to take off on October 15, 2021.

ITA is becoming the new “flag” carrier of Italy, while the parts of Alitalia are auctioned off. According to the Italian press, the new ITA may end up licensing the name Alitalia.

You can access Alitalia here (cannot find a website for ITA yet)

It is unclear what happens to the tickets that Alitalia continues to sell flights past October 14, 2021, when it no longer operates them. According to the deal with the EU, the new airline cannot simply take these tickets over.

The Italian government may end up either refunding the tickets or endorsing them on other airlines, such as the new Italia Trasporto Aereo (ITA) that could be trading using the Alitalia name. Confusing right? There are 250,000 to 300,000 tickets sold by Alitalia past the date it operates.

Announcement from ENAC (Google translate from Italian):

Press release n. 53/2021

ITA can take off: ENAC issues the air operator certificate and the air transport license to the new national company

ENAC, the National Civil Aviation Authority, issued today 18 August 2021, the Air Operator Certificate (COA) and the Air Transport Operating License to the company ITA (Italy Transport Air).

“ITA can take off – declared the President of the National Civil Aviation Authority, State Lawyer Pierluigi Di Palma. The hope is that the new national reference company will contribute to the restart of the sector, making a decisive contribution to overcoming the difficulties deriving from the pandemic crisis. ENAC will continue in its institutional and technical task to ensure the operational start-up of ITA, ensuring compliance with public interests and the rights of passengers which are essential elements of the air transport business. ”

Alessio Quaranta, Director General of ENAC, also points out that “The issue of the AOC certifies that the airline possesses the professional capacity and business organization necessary to ensure the operation of its aircraft in safe conditions. The aircraft operator license constitutes the final provision relating to the legal-administrative and economic-financial, as well as technical-operational checks.

With the possession of the AOC and the aircraft operator license, the company can start the sale of tickets “.

Rome, 08-18-2021

Conclusion

The debt is left with the “old” Alitalia, while the new ITA (Italia Trasporto Aereo) may rent the name of Alitalia for several years.

The only difference between this and Alitalia’s previous four/five reboots is that all the employees are under new contracts, and part of the operations are sold.

The new ITA cannot buy the loyalty program of Alitalia called MilleMiglia. Still, the purchaser of MilleMiglia may later sell it to ITA that could be trading using the name Alitalia.

It seems that this is an “Italian” solution to continuing the Alitalia under ITA. I wonder if they have new ticket stock (055 is Alitalia) and a two-letter IATA code (AZ is Alitalia’s)?

Alitalia will stop selling flights past October 14, 2021, from midnight tonight, and the new airline, ITA – Italia Trasporto Aereo, will begin selling flights on August 26 for travel from October 15, 2021.

Existing Alitalia ticket holders will see their revenue and award tickets canceled if travel is not completed by October 14, 2021. After that, revenue tickets are refunded, and miles returned to MilleMiglia accounts (not sure what will happen with the program).

You can access Alitalia here and the new ITA here.

Here’s the information from Alitalia:

Paid Tickets

SCHEDULE CHANGES AND REFUNDS FOR FLIGHTS FROM 15 OCTOBER

As a result, Alitalia is offering passengers holding an Alitalia ticket (055) for flights purchased on all Alitalia Markets:

• by and not after 24 August 2021;  
  
• with a travel date from 15 October 2021; 
• to/from any destination/origin worldwide; 

that have been canceled, the forms of assistance and reimbursement below, of their choice:

• change of booking (rebooking or rerouting – or modification of the itinerary to reach the original destination or return to the point of origin of the trip), without fare integration, on a flight that can be used by the passenger, by 14 October 2021 (final date of return);
• change of destination with possible fare integration, to travel by 14 October 2021 (final date of return). There is no refund for differences in the fare.

Change of destination will only be possible:

• for tickets that are IN ITALY, for destinations that are IN ITALY;
• for tickets that are INTERNATIONAL, for destinations that are INTERNATIONAL.

To adjust or change the booking, passengers can phone the Call Center or alternatively contact the travel agency that issued the ticket.

If they are unable or not interested in rescheduling, passengers can request the full refund, without penalty, of the price at which the ticket was purchased or the residual value of the ticket for the journey not yet made. The request will be accepted and defined as soon as possible, in accordance with Regulation EC261/2004.

To request a full refund, passengers who have purchased tickets on the Alitalia website will be able to click on link found in the cancellation notification message.

To request a partial refund, passengers can phone the Call Center. Passengers who have purchased a ticket at a travel agency can contact their travel agent directly.

You can use current tickets through October 14, 2021, by changing destination if you so wish. However, passengers ticketed for flights past October 14 have no other option than to request a refund of the fare paid.

MilleMiglia Award Tickets

PASSENGERS WITH MILLEMIGLIA AWARD TICKETS 

Passengers in possession of MilleMiglia award tickets with a travel date from 15 October 2021 to/from any destination/origin around the world, booked on a canceled flight, can:

• contact the Call Center to rebook, without penalty, on Alitalia flights or flights operated by SkyTeam Partners and other Frequent Flyer Partners by 14 October 2021 (last date of return);
• request a change of destination, with mileage integration if necessary, on either operational AZ flights or operational flights of SkyTeam Partners and other Frequent Flyer Partners to fly within 14 October 2021 (last date of return).

Passengers who want to give up the trip can request the re-credit of the miles, the refund of taxes and surcharges, by clicking on the link present in the cancelation notification message.

Here Alitalia is referring to canceled flights. It is unclear what happens to award tickets for flights by SkyTeam partners that are not canceled by the operating airline.

Is the current Alitalia going to cancel them if the flight is past October 14 and credit the miles back to MilleMiglia account, or do they allow passengers to utilize the flights?

Travel Pass

TRAVELPASS 

Passengers in possession of Alitalia TravelPass (055) for flights purchased on all Alitalia Markets:

• by and not after 24 August 2021;  
• with a travel date from 15 October 2021; 
• to/from any destination/origin worldwide; 

that have been canceled, can select from one of the following options

• Change of booking (rebooking or rerouting to reach the original destination), with no fare integration, on flight that can be used by the passenger, by 14 October 2021 (last return date).
• If they are unable or not interested in rescheduling, passengers can request a full refund, without penalty, of the price of the ticket. The refund will be paid in the original form of payment. Tso request a refund, passengers must contact the Alitalia Contact Center.

Passengers in possession of Alitalia TravelPass Packages, purchased on all Alitalia Markets, valid beyond 14 October 2021, can take advantage of one of the following options:

• use of the totally or partially unused package with booking and ticket issuance by 14 October 2021 (last return date). It will not be possible to change the parameters selected during the purchase phase of the package (destination, names, number of trips, number of passengers, booking period, blackout dates)
• in the case of a lack of possibilities or interest in using the package by 14 October 2021, passengers can request a full refund the price at which the package was purchased (if totally unused) or the residual value of the package (if partially unused). The refund will be paid in the original form of payment.

To request a refund, passengers should contact the Call Center.

Here are the previous articles about ITA:

Alitalia Operations To End October 14 & Italia Trasporti Aereo (ITA) Begins October 15, 2021

ITA Cleared To Fly – May Rent Alitalia Brand

New Mini-Alitalia In The Making After Losses Mount (€8 Billion In Four Years)

Alitalia Reboots As ITA (Italia Trasporto Aereo)

Conclusion

It appears that this Alitalia to ITA conversion might be just another attempt to keep the “Alitalia” alive, although with no “connections” to the old entity.

But haven’t we seen all this preivously? Alitalia has been relaunched four/five times while billions have been lost by the Italian taxpayers and Etihad, which once tried to revitalize the airline without success.

The new ITA may license the Alitalia name and perhaps even purchase the MilleMiglia frequent flier program from the entity that buys it from the bankrupt airline (they cannot acquire it directly).

ITA – Italia Trasporto Aereo tickets have become available for purchase from today for travel on or after October 15, 2021.

The tickets sold between now and October 14, 2021, are ticketed by the old Alitalia using the 055 ticket stock. ITA is supposed to have its own ticketing capability from October 15.

You can access ITA here.

Alitalia is refunding tickets issued for their flights past October 15, 2021.

Alitalia Refunds Paid & Award Tickets

ITA’s network:

ITALY

Alghero, Brindisi, Bologna, Bari, Cagliari, Catania, Comiso, Rome, Florence*, Genoa, Milan Linate, Naples, Olbia, Palermo,  Pescara, Reggio Calabria, Lamezia Terme, Trieste, urin, Venice and Verona

EUROPE, NORTH AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST

Malaga*, Algeri, Amsterdam, Athens, Barcelona, Belgrade**, Bruxelles, Il Cairo, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Geneva, London Heathrow, Luxemburg*, Madrid, Malta, Marseille*, Munich, Nice, Paris Orly, Sofia**, Stuttgart*, Tirana, Tel Aviv, Tunisi, Valencia*, Zurich

REST OF THE WORLD

Boston, Buenos Aires*, Sao Paulo*, Tokyo Haneda, Washington*, New York, Los Angeles*, Miami

*The following destinations will be available from March 2022.
**The following destinations will be available from August 2022.

Here’s what ITA has up on its website:

F.A.Q – Frequently Asked Questions

BOOKING OFFICE

I am in possession of an Alitalia ticket (whose number begins with 055-) issued with Alitalia before August 26 to fly after October 15th. My flight has been canceled. Can you offer me assistance with reimbursement and/or compensation?

For Alitalia tickets (whose number begins with 055-) issued before the start of ITA sales (26/08/2021) it is recommended to contact Alitalia for additional information on how to refund.

I have a ticket issued by Alitalia to fly after October 15th. My flight has been canceled. Can you offer me assistance for reprotection on EA flight for the same date/destination?

For Alitalia tickets (whose number begins with 055-) issued before the start of ITA sales (26/08/2021) it is recommended to contact Alitalia for additional information on how to reprotect.

Alitalia tickets issued before August 26 on Code share flights operated by partners and v.v.  to travel from October 15th are still valid? (e.g., FCOATL operated by DL)

For tickets on code share flights (those whose number begins with 055- for flights operated by an Alitalia partner airline) issued beforeAugust 26, the modality is the same as for the flights operated by Alitalia. It is recommended to contact Alitalia to get information on any possibility of rebooking.

I am in possession of an Alitalia ticket (whose number starts with 055-) issued before August 26, unused and left open for future bookings. Can I use it on ITA flights?

In this regard, it is recommended to contact Alitalia directly.

Can I use the Alitalia voucher (TCV) in my possession to book a flight with ITA?

This is not possible due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan. It is recommended to contact Alitalia to get information on reimbursement/rebooking.

I can’t find PayPal among payment options and the payment by online bank transfer. Will these be restored?

At the moment these features are not available on the website, but they will be activated shortly.

Is there an ITA app to make bookings, to purchase tickets and to check in?

We are working on the development of an app that will include all major features.

On your website, I can’t find the possibility to register and access a page similar to My Alitalia. When will this feature be available?

At the moment this feature is not yet available, but ITA will soon offer its customers the opportunity to register and access dedicated offers, to view their bookings and to do check in.

LOYALTY PROGRAM

Is my ALITALIA Millemiglia/Freccia Alata/Ulisse card still valid on ITA services?

Due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan, the latter cannot allow it, even through the competitive procedure, the Alitalia Millemiglia Program. It is therefore recommended to contact Alitalia to get information on how to manage your accumulated miles that have not been used by October 15, 2021, the date of start of ITA operations.

Will I be able to use ALITALIA program miles to buy award tickets on ITA flights?

Due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan, the latter cannot allow it, even through the competitive procedure, the Alitalia Millemiglia Program . It is therefore recommended to contact Alitalia to get information on how to manage your accumulated miles that have not been used by October 15, 2021, the date of start of ITA operations.

Will my status of a member of Alitalia MilleMiglia Club (CFA, Ulisse) be recognized by ITA?

Due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan, the latter cannot allow it, even through the competitive procedure, the Alitalia Millemiglia Program. ITA therefore intends to set up a new loyalty program as soon as possible. The new program will be efficient, modern, oriented to customers’ needs and that will allow greater access to the services offered by the company and its partners.

My award ticket has been canceled. Can I rebook on ITA flights?

Due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan, the latter cannot allow it, even through the competitive procedure, the Alitalia Millemiglia Program. ITA therefore intends to set up a new loyalty program as soon as possible. The new program will be efficient, modern, oriented to customers’ needs and that will allow greater access to the services offered by the company and its partners.

Will I have access to services for MilleMiglia members even after October 15th (call center, excess baggage, lounge, free seat pre-allocation, priority boarding…. etc.)?

Due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan, the latter cannot allow it, even through the competitive procedure, the Alitalia Millemiglia Program. ITA therefore intends to set up a new loyalty program as soon as possible. The new program will be efficient, modern, oriented to customers’ needs and that will allow greater access to the services offered by the company and its partners.

If I present my ALITALIA Millemiglia/Freccia Alata/Ulisse card at the airport, can I still have access to the priority services and the ITA lounge?

Due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan, the latter cannot allow it, even through the competitive procedure, the Alitalia Millemiglia Program. ITA therefore intends to set up a new loyalty program as soon as possible. The new program will be efficient, modern, oriented to customers’ needs and that will allow greater access to the services offered by the company and its partners.

Can I enroll in your Loyalty ITA program? Can you register me?

ITA intends to set up a new loyalty program as soon as possible. The new program will be efficient, modern, oriented customers’ needs and will allow greater access to the services offered by the company and its partners.

Can I spend the accumulated within the Alitalia program miles on other SkyTeam flights?

Due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan, the latter cannot allow it, even through the competitive procedure, the Alitalia Millemiglia Program. ITA therefore intends to set up a new loyalty program as soon as possible. The new program will be efficient, modern, oriented to customers’ needs and that will allow greater access to the services offered by the company and its partners.

ANCILLARY

I can’t find the Car Rental and Hotel page on the ITA website. Can I have access to the fares doing my booking by phone with ITA? Are there other sections of the ITA website? Who should I contact to get the fares?

These features will be available soon.

Can I still use my Gift Card?

Due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan the latter will not be able to manage Alitalia tickets issued before the start of ITA sales (26/08/2021) and with flight dates after the start of ITA operations (15/10/2021). It is recommended to contact Alitalia for additional information.

Can I use my Group Gift?

Due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan, the latter will not be able to honor Alitalia tickets issued before the start of ITA sales (18/08/2021) and with flight dates after the start of ITA operations (15/10/2021). It is recommended to contact Alitalia for additional information.

Does seat preallocation remain a paid service, like with Alitalia?

The purchase of the seat preallocation service is available on the website during online check-in, at the travel agency, at the airport and by contacting the ITA Customer Center.

NETWORK

What destinations are operated by ITA?

The destinations served by ITA can be consulted on the website www.itaspa.com at the link Network.

What aircraft will I be flying on?

This information will be available during the flight purchase process on the website www.itaspa.com

Why doesn’t ITA offer flights to Sardinia/Comiso?

ITA is not the assignee of the flights under the territorial continuity regime and cannot automatically operate on these routes while Alitalia within the Extraordinary Administration ceases such operations. ITA confirms that it pays close attention to destinations under the territorial continuity regime. It will follow with interest the progress of this issue and it is available to evaluate its participation in public tenders, which the competent authorities will offer for the assignment of routes operated with public service obligations.

CORPORATE

I am a Corporate customer: is my Corporate card still valid?

The Corporate card is managed within the Alitalia Millemiglia Program and due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan, the latter cannot allow it, even through the competitive procedure, the Alitalia Millemiglia Program. ITA therefore intends to set up a new loyalty program as soon as possible. The new program will be efficient, modern, oriented to customers’ needs and that will allow greater access to the services offered by the company and its partners.

I am a Corporate customer: will I be able to access dedicated services even after October 15th?

The Corporate card is managed within the Alitalia Millemiglia Program and due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan, the latter cannot allow it, even through the competitive procedure, the Alitalia Millemiglia Program. ITA therefore intends to set up a new loyalty program as soon as possible. The new program will be efficient, modern, oriented to customers’ needs and that will allow greater access to the services offered by the company and its partners.

I am an ABC (Alitalia Business Connect) customer: is the program valid? Are the points I have accumulated still valid?Will I lose them?Are my special rates still valid?

Since the ABC program is managed within the Alitalia loyalty program, due to the conditions set by the European Commission for the approval of ITA’s business plan, the latter cannot allow it, even through the competitive procedure, the Alitalia Millemiglia Program. Therefore, ITA intends to set up a new incentive program as soon as possible. It will be modern, oriented to customers’ needs and will allow greater access to the services of the company and its partners.

I am an ABC (Alitalia Business Connect) customer: does ITA have a new program, similar to ABC, in which I will be able to enroll?

ITA intends to set up a new incentive program as soon as possible. It will be modern, oriented to customers’ needs and will allow greater access to the services of the company and its partners.

Do you have a specific offer for Universities?

ITA has the intention to set up a specific offer for universities as soon as possible.

I am a customer subscribed to the Alitalia newsletter. Will I also receive your special offers? Do I have to subscribe to your newsletter? Can I do it from the ITA website?

At the moment these features are not available, but they will be implemented on the ITA website as soon as possible.

I am a Corporate customer: Is my access to the Alitalia Connect community also valid for ITA services?

Our services for Corporate customers will be available soon.

I am a Corporate customer: Will I receive your communications/news through another channel?  Does/will ITA also have a community?

Our services for Corporate customers will be available soon

I am an ABC (Alitalia Business Connect) customer: Is my access to the Alitalia Connect community also valid for ITA services? 

ITA intends to set up a new incentive program as soon as possible. It will be modern, oriented to customers’ needs and will allow greater access to the services of the company and its partners.

I am an ABC (Alitalia Business Connect) customer: will I receive your communications/news through another channel?  Does/will ITA have a community dedicated to SMEs?

IITA intends to set up a new incentive program as soon as possible. It will be modern, oriented to customers’ needs and will enable greater access to the services offered by the company and its partners.

PAYMENT

I have purchased a ticket (whose number begins with 055-) on the ITA sales channels. Why was the debit made by Alitalia in my credit card statement? 

Starting from August 26 and until October 14, the ticket sales service for ITA will be carried out by Alitalia, it will manage the payment processing phase in its own name but on behalf of ITA. The ticket issued by ITA will therefore be fully valid despite the fact that the debit in the credit card statement appears in the name of Alitalia.

Why is it not possible to pay on www.itaspa.com via PayPal?

For technical reasons, the form for PayPal payment will be made available only after October 15, 2021.

Why is it not possible to pay on www.itaspa.com via an online bank transfer?

For technical reasons, the form for online bank bank transfer payment will be made available only after October 15, 2021.

FARES

I can’t find the Youth, Military and Family fares page on the ITA website. How can I book them?

You can book these fares by contacting the ITA Customer Center, or by contacting your trusted travel agency.

COVID

Information on Covid restrictions, the required documentation (DPLF, Green Pass…)

This information is available on the website www.itaspa.com at the link Information for Passengers.

AT THE AIRPORT

Where can I find the rules for baggage (checked and hand baggage)

The rules are published on the website www.itaspa.com at the link Baggage Info.

ON BOARD

What are the travel classes?

In this first phase, there will be three travel classes for intercontinental flights (Business, Premium, Economy), two for international flights (Business, Economy) and one for domestic flights. On Rome-Milan and Milan-Rome flights, there will also be an additional class with special services.

What services are offered on board for the different classes and destinations?

The offered services will be consistent with the travel class and in line with the anti-Covid restrictions in force. For further information please visit the website at the link Travel Classes.

Conclusion

This is a “messy” handover of traffic from Alitalia to ITA, which may end up “leasing” the name from the old airline for several years and continue trading as Alitalia like nothing would have changed.

It is still unclear what will happen with the MilleMiglia frequent flier program that the old Alitalia is auctioning/selling off. ITA cannot participate in the initial process but can buy the program from whoever buys it first.

The new ITA begins with the slowest traffic period of the year during the ongoing pandemic when many travel restrictions are in place. Therefore, it is a tough business case funded by the Italian Government like the airline’s previous four/five reboots.

You can only be amused of the news coming out of Italy surrounding the end of the Alitalia that had its last flight on Thursday and the new ITA – Italia Transport Aero that begins flying today.

ITA that will soon be called Alitalia, after purchasing the name and internet domain for 90 million euros, and continues to fly the same unprofitable routes as its numerous predecessors albeit with a reduced number of employees. What has really changed?

You can access ITA here.

A message that ITA has up on its website:

The brand name of Alitalia and the internet domain Alitalia.com were purchased for 90 million euros in an auction by the ITA, after the first auction with a starting price of 290 million euros had no bidders.

ITA will employ 2,800 staff compared to 10,000 or so by Alitalia. Also, the airline begins its operations with 52 aircraft.

Alitalia has received more than 10 billion euros since 2008 from the Italian government in the form of state aid that is in direct violation of the European Union laws (you are not indefinitely allowed to prop up failing businesses). The government has capitalized the new airline with 1.3 billion euros.

The European Union has already ruled the previous subsidies unlawful, and only signed off this ITA airline if it starts from a clean slate.

Also, Etihad lost a considerable amount of cash when it decided to take a 49% stake in Alitalia and back some of its loans.

It is unclear what happened with Alitalia’s MilleMiglia frequent flyer program that is also being sold to an unrelated third party that can later sell it to ITA (Alitalia).

Conclusion

For me, it seems, that this is a convoluted solution to an Italian problem.

Wouldn’t it have been easier to just let Alitalia finally collapse and let someone else than the Italian government start a new airline? It has already rebooted twice previously and has been in administration since 2017.

It is very difficult to see how you can profitably start a new airline in the current environment regardless of what your cost base is.

I liked flying Alitalia a few times when it was under Etihad’s “control” with dine-on-demand and nice lounges. It has been a borderline disaster on a couple of short-haul flights ever since.

We certainly wish the new Alitalia the very best. Somehow I just have a feeling that this will be merely a Déjà vu.

The new version of Alitalia, ITA Airways, took off to the skies last Friday and is in the process of launching its frequent flier program Volare; and also offers bonus points and a status match opportunity for now (read more here).

ITA Airways, the new “Alitalia,” already purchased the brand and the website but cannot buy the MilleMiglia frequent flier program directly. Still, it can later acquire it from an unrelated third party.

You can access MilleMiglia here.

MilleMiglia elite members can continue receiving the SkyPriority benefits and earning miles, both award ad elite qualifying, when flying in Air France, KLM, or Middle Eastern Airlines. You cannot, however, redeem miles on these airlines.

MilleMiglia members can currently redeem their miles for Lastminute.com vouchers that can be used towards travel purchases.

Conclusion

It is unclear what will happen to the current MilleMiglia, as ITA Airways cannot purchase it due to a deal that the Italian government negotiated with the EU. It is inconceivable that the program could continue trading without being part of an airline.

TopBonus tried to do this for few months after airberlin collapsed. However, the frequent flier program eventually filed for insolvency and ceased to exist too.

The new ITA Airways, likely we will soon call it Alitalia, already offers status matches for MilleMiglia members and will allow earning of points (they don’t call them miles) for flights from the end of this year.

ITA Airways that was born from the ashes of Alitalia has today joined the SkyTeam alliance.

ITA Airways has already launched its frequent-flier program (read more here) that offers status matches from most programs. The airline has also purchased the name of Alitalia and Alitalia’s website addresses. MilleMiglia, Alitalia’s frequent flier program, is not yet part of ITA Airways (it could be at a later point).

You can access ITA Airways here and SkyTeam here.

Here’s the announcement from the SkyTeam:

AMSTERDAM, 29 October 2021 – SkyTeam, the global airline alliance, has welcomed ITA Airways – Italy’s new national carrier – into the alliance, replacing Alitalia. With ITA Airways on board, SkyTeam’s 700 million customers will continue to enjoy seamless connections to key destinations across Italy.  

 

“For more than 20 years, the Italian market has been a cornerstone of SkyTeam’s European network and no other airline alliance connects Italy better to the world. We warmly welcome ITA Airways’ decision to join our alliance and ensure continuity of service for the millions of customers who choose SkyTeam as their preferred alliance to Italy,” said Walter Cho, SkyTeam Chairman. “SkyTeam and our members look forward to working with ITA Airways to establish long-term partnership opportunities going forward.”

Alfredo Altavilla, Executive Chairman of ITA Airways said: “Joining SkyTeam is a natural step, enabling us to continue to deliver a global network and seamless experience that customers flying to and from Italy expect. We look forward to close cooperation with our SkyTeam partners to support the start-up of our company, the Italian flag carrier.”

Alitalia ceased operations on 14 October and left the SkyTeam global airline alliance on the same date. SkyTeam has agreed with Alitalia Loyalty to continue the partnership that will enable the six million members of the MilleMiglia frequent flyer program to earn and redeem miles on selected SkyTeam members’ flights, offering a wealth of opportunities and exclusive services.

ITA Airways is also working closely with SkyTeam and its members to roll out SkyTeam-branded benefits that customers enjoy across the alliance, including priority airport services.

Remember to sign up for the ITA Airways program and do a status match

ITA Launches Volare With 10,000 Bonus Points & Status Match Offers

Conclusion

Once ITA Airways acquires the MilleMiglia frequent flier program, the transformation from Alitalia to ITA Airways back to Alitalia is complete.

There is an interesting tidbit on the press release above that MilleMiglia members can continue to earn and redeem on select SkyTeam member airlines for now. Alitalia’s website is down (only refund information is shown), and there is no information on how current MilleMiglia members could achieve this.

When the handover from Alitalia to ITA Airways took place, MilleMiglia stated that members could earn and utilize SkyPriority benefits on KLM, Air France, and Middle Eastern Airlines (MEA) flights. It is not clear if this has now expanded to more member airlines.

While writing about the ITA Airways joining of SkyTeam alliance yesterday, I noted that the references to MilleMiglia had been removed from Alitalia’s website. However, the press release from the alliance indicated that some benefits would still apply (read more here).

MilleMiglia was the frequent flier program for the now-defunct Alitalia (the name of Alitalia and the website address have already been purchased by ITA), and ITA Airways is not allowed to buy it directly due to Italy’s deal with the European Union in regards to funding the new airline.

You can access MilleMiglia here.

The same day that ITA Airways joined SkyTeam, MilleMiglia sent out an email blast to program members, reminding them that they were still around, albeit at a new web address.

The “new” website is essentially the old MilleMiglia part of the Alitalia’s. They still try to get members to credit activities to the program that may go away at the end of this year unless renewed.

Conclusion

Unless MilleMiglia magically ends up as a part of ITA Airways, it is challenging to see how it could sustain itself rather than simply going under and vanishing like what happened with airberlin’s TopBonus, which tried to continue trading after the airline collapsed.

ITA Airways, which may soon be called Alitalia, cannot purchase the MilleMiglia from the bankrupt company, but it must be first sold to an unrelated third party that can sell it to the new airline later.

A very rare status match opportunity is now available to refugees of the former Alitalia Mille Miglia program as Lufthansa matches all the way up to their Senator level.

To see Lufthansa match status from other carriers is extremely rare and usually only happens when a nearby competitor or a Star Alliance member goes out of business.

As Alitalia as well as Mille Miglia program vanished from the skies and a new airline emerged Lufthansa Miles&More thought it’s a good idea to acquire a few new customers this way.

The Status Match offer is limited in number of matches and timeframe – until 31.03.2022 – at the sole discretion of StatusMatch.com and Lufthansa Miles & More. It may end at any time so getting in early is best.

You can access the landing page for the status match here.

Welcome on board, dear MilleMiglia members.

You can now enjoy all the benefits of Senator or Frequent Traveller status with Lufthansa Miles & More.

Register now in two quick and easy steps with StatusMatch.com

StatusMatch is a company that has specialized in offering these matches in a verified way and most recently also processed the Air Canada match. They can check if the Alitalia status is or used to be valid so any fake submissions will be weeded out.

Here are some FAQ that are posted on the page:

• Who can participate in the Lufthansa Miles & More status match promotion and what frequent flyer status levels are matched?
• A: This promotion gives current Alitalia MilleMiglia status holders an equivalent status with Lufthansa Miles & More. Alitalia MilleMiglia Ulisse status holders get Frequent Traveller status with Miles & More, and Alitalia MilleMiglia Freccia Alata and Alitalia MilleMiglia Freccia Alata Plus status holders get Senator status with Miles & More. You must have a Miles & More service card number to participate in the promotion. If you are not yet a member of Miles & More, you can register in just a few steps.
• How long is the awarded Miles & More frequent flyer status valid, if approved for a status match?
• A: If your application is approved, your status will be valid until 28.02.2023
• I have an elite status with another frequent flyer programme, other than Alitalia MilleMiglia – can I still participate in the promotion?
• A: No. This status match promotion is only offered to elite members of the Alitalia MilleMiglia programme.

So this offer is for the Mille Miglia program only which continues to exist in some form despite Alitalia having turned to dust.

The status with Lufthansa will be valid for roughly 14 months from now. Not exactly a super long term but better than nothing.

One important detail from the t&c: Members that attain a Senator status through this promotion will not receive any eVouchers with the status upgrade and will not be able to use the mileage advance privilege. 

Lufthansa has gotten burned that was before when they offered the match in the UK, back then you were still able to overdraw your Senator account by 100,000 miles (now reduced to 50,000). Members matched, booked a business class award, and then “threw away” the account.

Conclusion

If you’re still carrying Alitalia status then I suggest taking advantage of this campaign as Lufthansa FTL and especially Senator are solid tier level that come with useful benefits. Of course for Star Gold benefits a match to Senator level is required.

These are the terms & conditions for this campaign:

Lufthansa Miles & More Alitalia MilleMiglia Status Match Campaign

These specific Lufthansa Miles & More Alitalia MilleMiglia status match terms and conditions apply in addition to the general StatusMatch.com Terms of Service.

(I) Only 1 status match per person will be permitted under this campaign.
(II) If approved, the status match upgrade is valid until February 28, 2023.

(III) All status match requests are handled by and are the responsibility of StatusMatch.com and not by Lufthansa, Miles & More or any of its affiliates.
(IV) In addition to other eligibility requirements, a status match will only be granted to applicant’s who’s name matches the records in the Miles & More program.
(V) With the participation in the campaign, participants acknowledge that the data submitted to Statusmatch.com will be shared with Miles & More for verification purposes.
(VI) Only Alitalia MilleMiglia elite status holders are eligible for the Lufthansa Miles & More status upgrade. Alitalia MilleMiglia Ulisse elite members are upgraded to Miles & More Frequent Traveller status, MilleMiglia Freccia Alata and Alitalia MilleMiglia Freccia Alata Plus are upgraded to Miles & More Senator status.
(VII) The Status Match offer is limited in number of matches and timeframe (until 31.03.2022) at the sole discretion of StatusMatch.com and Lufthansa Miles & More. It may end at any time.
(VIII) Members that are approved for a status match will not eligible for any potential subsequent status match with Miles & More.
(IX) The awarded Lufthansa Miles & More status may be suspended, revoked or terminated by Miles & More in accordance with the Miles & More program terms and conditions.
(X) Miles & More reserves the right to deny the status match approval for members who have violated the Miles & More program terms and conditions in the past.
(XI) Miles & More may take up to 10 business days after approval by StatusMatch.com before the upgraded tier is visible in the member’s Miles & More account.
(XII) Approved members will not receive a physical status card. The digital status card is available from the time of upgrade in the Miles & More app.
(XIII) Statusmatch.com, Lufthansa or Miles&More may change the tier-mapping, eligibily criteria, or suspend the promotion at any time without notice. (XIV) Members that attain a Senator status through this promotion will not receive any eVouchers with the status upgrade and will not be able to use the mileage advance privilege.

A LoyaltyLobby reader dropped us a note about their Lufthansa status match experience from now-defunct Alitalia MilleMiglia. The airline has resurfaced as an ITA, but there is no new home for MilleMiglia (the new Alitalia – ITA was not allowed to purchase it).

Readers are encouraged to send us questions, comments, or opinions by email, Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. We’ll try to cover them here several times a week.

Here’s the email from the reader:

I regularly read your newsletter and came across the article on the status match from Alitalia Millemiglia to Lufthansa Miles&More.

I followed the link you indicated and, landing on the Miles&More status match page, I provided all requested information. I currently hold Freccia Alata Plus (the highest tier) in Alitalia’s failed frequent flyer program and fully qualify for match to Miles&More Senato. By the way, I did hold Senator status for many years.

Anyway, I documented my current Millemiglia status with the required screenshot of my account page.

The Status Match was rejected (twice; I was so astonished at the first rejection that I tried again!) in spite of satisfying every criterion. The explanation of the rejection was uninformative (copied in below my note). I am writing to let you know that this particular status match program is disappointingly unreliable and misleading.

MilleMiglia Miles Issue (Worthless):

On a related issue, the Millemiglia miles were useless without the accompanying airline, Alitalia. Therefore I traded 326,000 miles in for vouchers on last.minute.com, an offer that Millemiglia bombards its members with. The vouchers come in specific sizes associated with specific mileage counts; the bottom line is that I could not trade 326,000 miles into 1 decent-sized vouucher, but instead ended up with multiple smaller vouchers which cannot be combined together! So it is all completely unusable.

Bottom line: the folding of Alitalia made Millemiglia worthless, and even a status match to Miles&More failed.

Oh well.

I was laughing when Millemiglia sent me an email last week trying to get me to buy these n”o “bankrupt” miles at a 20% bonus. I doubt that they had any sane takers on their offer.

It seems that their partner vouchers are % off or Euro off of a certain amount. Essentially, they are just a discount from the purchase price. I find it unlikely that Millemiglia would have any real cash to pay for try partner rewards.

Message from Lufthansa

Status Match Application Outcome

Unfortunately we are not able to process your status match application at this time.
Reasons why we are unable to approve on this occasion may include:
– The transaction involved has been marked as high risk
– The documentation provided has been altered
– The loyalty status provided is incorrect or invalid

Sebastian’s piece about Lufthansa Status Match:

Lufthansa Miles&More Offers Status Match For Alitalia Mille Miglia Members Through March 31, 2022

Conclusion

Understandably, an airline that accepts matches from a specific program tries to ensure that the documentation submitted is accurate.

Based on the reader’s email from Lufthansa, it is unclear what the real reason is. Why would they consider the status match application a “high risk”?

Not sure if Lufthansa or the company that handles these (Statusmatch.com)  is equipped to process these matches properly, it has extended to Millemiglia elite members considering how they failed to complete the application that the reader submitted?

MilleMiglia, the frequent flier program of now-defunct Alitalia, still tries to trade without an airline tie-up and miserable redemption options.

The program did an email blast to the program membership on Friday, letting us know that it has been extended through January 31, 2023.

You can access MilleMiglia here.

Email From MilleMiglia:

Conclusion

I guess that the real question regarding MilleMiglia is, does anyone even care at this point?

ITA Airways, the “new” airline (former Alitalia in reality), has moved on and launched another frequent flier program that should be integrated into SkyTeam sometime in the second quarter.

You have to bear in mind that the EU didn’t allow ITA to buy MilleMiglia due to Italy’s government investment in it (and numerous times to the always money-losing Alitalia).

The program has now been renewed until January 31, 2023. Let’s hope that they pull the plug at that time and delete all the customer data.

A few days ago I received yet another email from the Mille Miglia program which was once the Alitalia Frequent Flyer program but has since morphed into a zombie since the airline has been wound down.

The program even went to elaborate lengths to design a new website to solicit customers to use the scheme as a bank for loyalty affiliations which for obvious reasons (lack of airline backing) has outlived its usefulness.

When Alitalia finally went under so did the original version of the Mille Miglia program as the official frequent flyer program but the scheme itself stuck around and continues to operate to this day.

In the meanwhile the actual flight operations of Alitalia were transferred to a new airline called ITA which then started it’s own, official FFP the Volare Program where former Alitalia members even received a generous status match to Volare.

So what exactly is this MilleMiglia zombie still doing? Let’s have a look at their website.

So the loyalty currency one earns can then be exchanged into some form of voucher a lastminute.com operated travel portal.

From the information on the Travel section members can still earn miles with the following airlines:

• Air France
• Air Europa
• KLM
• Middle East Airlines

Members can also earn miles when renting a car from Avis and Maggiore as well as booking hotels through said designated travel portal.

This would be the same portal where the collected rewards can be exchanged through. Here is one of their reward options for 86,000 miles – a 250 Euro voucher:

It doesn’t take a genius or someone who is well versed in the world of loyalty to see that this entire system is a bunch of rubbish and completely unworkable.

Not only that but I don’t see a single reason why someone would even continue collecting any kind of loyalty currency with a program like this? You can easily sign up with a real frequent flyer program, be it of the new ITA or another SkyTeam program.

Another question I’m asking myself is who is bankrolling the operation of this? It’s apparent that Mille Miglia has become a gig of someone who ended up with the rights to keep the MM program running and they have cooked up this rather strange system with less than ten partners to collect a loyalty currency which can then be redeemed for rather low value vouchers. What’s the endgame here?

Conclusion

The Mille Miglia program that was once the frequent flyer program of (now defunct) Alitalia has survived and is currently sleepwalking around as a loyalty program with a handful of partners without a specific mission.

Their website reveals a very limited option of where points can be collected (earning rates omitted too) and it doesn’t show any worthwhile way of engaging in this form of loyalty scheme.

Despite the program no having any clear path, MM is regularly sending emails to existing members that they’re still alive and kicking. It goes without saying that there is no way I’d recommend to credit even a single transaction to this program. Air Berlin’s topbonus has tried for some time to survive without the airline backing them as well but eventually the whole system went under. No surprise there!

Lufthansa submitted a bid on Wednesday to acquire an undisclosed minority stake in ITA Airways (rumored to be 40%) and the option to purchase the rest.

According to the Italys’ economy minister, Lufthansa is the only bidder for the stake after other potential partners decided not to go forward, likely scared of losses of more than 10 billion euros since early 2000.

You can access ITA here and Lufthansa here.

ITA Airways is the “new” Alitalia, an airline that went through several reorganizations due to mounting losses.

Lufthansa’s announcement:

Deutsche Lufthansa AG is aiming to acquire a stake in the Italian national carrier ITA Airways (Italia Trasporto Aereo S.p.A.). The plan is to agree on the initial acquisition of a minority stake as well as on options to purchase the remaining shares at a later date. Today, the company submitted an offer to the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance (Ministero dell’economia e delle finanze) to conclude a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in this respect. Contingent on both parties signing this MoU, further negotiations and discussions would be conducted on an exclusive basis.

These talks would primarily focus on the form of a possible equity investment, the commercial and operational integration of ITA into the Lufthansa Airline Group, as well as resulting synergies. In case of a binding agreement is reached, its implementation would be subject to approval by the relevant authorities.

For Lufthansa Group, Italy is the most important market outside of its home markets and the US. Italy’s importance for both business and private travel lies in its strong export-oriented economy and status as one of Europe’s top vacation spots.

Conclusion

It would be bad for the competition in Europe if Lufthansa’s offer would succeed as they already own Swiss, Austrian, and Brussels + Eurowings.

Italy needs someone to professionally run its flag carrier, which is merely an updated version of Alitalia, with a new name and repainted planes.

It is quite remarkable that nobody has been able to shut down this airline that has lost more than 10 billion euros since in the past 15 or so years.