- The CEO of the new airline, Fabio Lazzerini, confirmed at a press conference that the airline will grow to 78 aircraft in 2022.
- This increase will bring in 26 more aircraft of which 6 will be wide body and 20 narrow body.
- What will happen to Alitalia loyalty rewards when the new national airline takes off?
Said Lazzerini: “From 2022, we expect to begin the introduction of the new generation aircraft in the fleet, which will progressively replace the old technology aircraft. At the end of 2025, the fleet will grow to 105 (23 wide body and 82 narrow body), with 81 new generation aircraft (equal to 77 percent of the total fleet) which will allow – in the intentions of the newco – to significantly reduce the impact environment and optimize the efficiency and quality of the offer.”
THE LOYALTY CARD
ITA says goodbye to the Alitalia MilleMiglia – What happens to the points on the Alitalia card?
The loyalty card switch from Alitalia to ITA is planned for mid-October when Alitalia stops flying and the new ITA (Italy Air Transport) begins, which will leave only 52 aircraft. According to the new CEO, this is enough to “compete.” He said that while it is true that the other companies have larger fleets, “how many planes do they actually fly now?” Says Lazzerini, given the COVID crisis, there are few.
Lazzerini explained: “To avoid spending all the Italian government money, we have chosen a gradual approach linked to the volumes of traffic expected in the coming months. If the variants do not lead to new closures, the company will increase the number of aircraft [to 78 in 2022] in step with the increase in traffic.”
What happens to Alitalia’s MilleMiglia card?
The European Commission decided that Alitalia Loyalty, the company that manages the loyalty program of the Italian company “MilleMiglia,” must be sold to the highest bidder through a public tender, transparent and open to all interested parties. But ITA, the new state airline, will not be able to participate in this tender as a sign of discontinuity between the 2 companies. The MilleMiglia cards in circulation will thus end up with a new owner who is not yet known and who could also operate in an area other than the aviation sector.
What happens from October 15, 2021?
The buyer of the loyalty program will decide how to use the prize pool of miles that the members (about 5 million) have accumulated. Since these miles are a debt for those who manage the program, it will be necessary to see how it will be “repaid.” If the new owner of Loyalty were to be, for example, a supermarket brand, it could convert those miles into shopping vouchers, Lazzerini stated.
