Italia Trasporto Aereo (ITA)

History

2024: Lufthansa bought ITA Airways

On July 3, 2024, the European Commission approved a deal to buy German airline Deutsche Lufthansa a 41 percent stake in Italian ITA Airways (Italia Trasporto Aereo SpA). The value of the asset is €325 million, and the transaction is planned to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2024.

Negotiations to buy ITA Airways by Lufthansa began in 2023. The planned merger raised concerns among the regulator about the possible restriction of competition in the field of passenger air transportation. Against this background, the Lufthansa group, the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) and ITA Airways have proposed a number of antitrust measures that have helped remove all barriers.

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Lufthansa

Under the terms of the deal, the parties pledged to provide one or two competing airlines with the opportunity to operate direct flights between Rome and Milan, as well as several cities in Central Europe. Plus, to make a transaction, approval of other antimonopoly authorities outside the European Union is necessary. Options for the acquisition of the remaining shares of ITA Airways are agreed between the Lufthansa group and MEF and can be exercised no earlier than 2025.

Once the deal closes, ITA Airways will be closely integrated with Lufthansa. At the same time, the Italian air carrier will retain its brand. It is noted that the acquisition of ITA Airways strengthens the internationalization of Lufthansa. Rome ITA Airways, based at the airline, carried almost 15 million passengers in 2023. It has a modern fleet of 96 Airbus aircraft, including 23 long-haul and 73 short-haul liners. The company has approximately 4,860 employees as of mid-2024. ITA Airways serves a total of 69 destinations.^[1]

2021: Alitalia assets move to Italia Trasporto Aereo

In mid-October 2021, the Italian air carrier Alitalia was liquidated due to bankruptcy. Its assets went to the new airline Italia Transport Aereo (ITA), created by the state. Read more here.

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