After operating for 74 years, Italy’s flag carrier Alitalia will no longer offer its services as it has been shut down for good after profound financial problems, especially provoked by the COVID-19 situation.
Alitalia’s flight from Italy’s capital to Cagliari marked the final flight of this flag carrier, while from now on, the same will be replaced by Italia Trasporto Aereo (ITA), SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
In this regard, the President of ITA Airways, Alfredo Altavilla, has stressed that “We have been born as a new Italian brand, and we have chosen to work only with Italian companies,” as reported by CNN.
During the last 20 years, Alitalia has cost the country nearly €13 billion. The spread of the Coronavirus and its new strains provoked a devastating situation for the company.
Due to the difficult situation caused by the virus, ITA will employ only 2,800 of its staff, while a large number of people are facing unemployment.
Authorities in Italy have confirmed that ITA will be owned by the country’s government. The airline plans to start with 52 jets, while the number of aircraft will increase to 105 by the end of 2025.
Initially, ITA will offer its services to 44 destinations, increasing to 75 by 2025.
Alitalia recently was suffering a profound financial crisis, especially after the spread of the Coronavirus.
Earlier this year, the Commission of the European Union approved a total of €73.02 million aid for Alitalia to help the airline recover from COVID-19 damages, after confirming that such a decision was in accordance with the EU State aid rules.
Last month, SchengenVisaInfo.com reported that based on European Commission conclusions, €900 million in loans granted to Alitalia in 2017 were considered illicit under the EU State aid rules.
Back then, the EU Commission stressed that the loans were given to the airline in “unfair economic advantage.”
In this regard, the Executive Vice-President and the authority responsible for competition policy, Margrethe Vestager, pointed out that the loans offered to Alitalia were unlawful and put the airline at an advantage compared to other airlines in Italy.
“Following our in-depth investigation, we reached the conclusion that two public loans worth €900 million granted by Italy to Alitalia gave the company an unfair advantage over its competitors, in breach of EU State aid rules. They must now be recovered by Italy from Alitalia to help restore a level playing field in the European aviation industry,” Vestager emphasized.
However, Italia Trasporto Aereo has reached an agreement with the European Commission, and it will be economically independent. The same will not be considered responsible for any illegal state aid received by Alitalia during the recent years.
