Delta Air Lines and Air France-KLM at the end of the runway to buy Ita Airways
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14 mars 2022
Writing
Delta Air Lines and Air France-KLM say they are ready for the acquisition of ITA Airways, in addition to Lufthansa, which confirmed last January its intention to acquire 40% of the Italian with the shipping company MSC.
The Lufthansa group had requested exclusivity from the Italian government for three months to study the negotiation, expressly asking it not to take into account other formal proposals until the end of this period.
However, the Italian government has just given its agreement to the privatization of ITA Airways, which allows it to authorize the takeover of the airline.
According to our information, Delta Air Lines and Air France-KLM are willing to invest in ITA, although the French company can only do so if it reimburses part of the debt it has contracted with the French government due to covid. -19.
On the other hand, the international fund Certares, dedicated to low-cost investments, would also be interested. Delta Air Lines and Air France-KLM, as well as ITA Airways, are part of the SkyTeam group, which would facilitate their incorporation, while Lufthansa is part of Star Alliance.
With this new agreement, Delta Air Lines, which has already added connections from various cities in the United States to Panama and Europe thanks to the code share agreement signed with ITA Airways, would reach a total of 92 destinations.
The ITA code includes flights between Rome and Atlanta, Boston, Detroit and New York, as well as select routes on Delta’s extensive US domestic network. And flights to Mexico and Canada.
Delta Air Lines will also place its code on ITA-operated flights to 33 destinations, including flights from New York, Washington DC, Boston, Los Angeles and Miami to Rome and 16 onward connections in Italy. For customers traveling beyond Italy, the Delta code will also be included on ITA flights to Albania, Egypt, Tunisia, Greece, Malta and Israel.
« Italy is one of the top destinations for Delta customers, and this codeshare, achieved just two months after the launch of ITA, expands our reach and makes it easier for our customers to go out into the world.“Said Perry Cantarutti, senior vice president of Delta Alliances.
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