Lufthansa and Italy’s government have won the final greenlight from the European Commission for Lufthansa Group’s eventual takeover of ITA Airways (the reborn and chronically money-losing Alitalia).
The deal between Italy’s government and Lufthansa is expected to close in early 2025. Lufthansa will invest 325 million in ITA and take a 41% stake. Lufthansa has an option to take over the rest at a later date.
You can access ITA Airways here and Lufthansa here.
ITA Airways and Lufthansa had to offer remedies to get the EU’s approval for the deal, including giving EasyJet slots at Milan’s Linate Airport and having British Airways, Iberia (IAG), and Air France & KLM support competition on select long-haul routes.
Once Lufthansa makes the capital investment, ITA Airways will pursue a SkyTeam exit and become another member of the Star Alliance.
The exact date of this alliance switchover is unclear, but it won’t happen overnight. You have at least a few months’ notice, but there could be close to immediate reciprocal benefits between ITA and Lufthansa Group airlines (Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian, and Brussels).
Conclusion
I truly hope that Lufthansa is certain that it can handle ITA Airways, as its predecessors have been chronically losing money, to the tune of more than 10 billion euros.
We should learn more about the SkyTeam exit and Star Alliance integration in early 2025 once Lufthansa has invested capital into ITA Airways.
Their goal must be to get ITA into the trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air Canada and United Airlines as soon as possible.
I would say that, realistically, the alliance switchover is probably at least six months away.
