[rferguson]

Hi all,

Have been reading on a few different online blogs and news feeds that Alitalia is considering leaving SkyTeam. The main reasons seem to be that Alitalia needs ‘permission’ to extend it’s North American network which it is desperate to do. Its newly appointed CEO was quoted as saying “SkyTeam (is a) long and good partnership, (it) has had significant benefits. But Alitalia is changing and wants to be master of its own destiny… we have to grow in the markets that interest us,” continuing “the North Atlantic is a very important sector for us.”

The Alitalia Chairman added “we can not increase our flights to North America, which is the richest market. We are not free to do this if you do not have the authorisation from our partners.”

I guess with Etihads 49% ownership of Alitalia the airline wouldn’t quite be ‘going it alone’.

[Author]

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