ITA has selected Airbus as the strategic partner for the fleet of the Italian airline. The airline has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Airbus for the purchase of 28 new aircraft: 10 Airbus A330neo aircraft for long-haul flights, 7 Airbus A220 family regional jets and 11 Airbus A320neo family aircraft (deliveries for the latter to start after the completion of the business plan).
ITA has also signed an agreement with Air Lease Corporation for the leasing of further 31 new generation Airbus aircraft, among which long, medium and short-haul jets. Overall, ITA will lease a total of 56 new Airbus aircraft over the course of the plan (13 long-haul jets, including the ultra-modern Airbus A350-900, and 43 short and mediumhaul aircraft) at significantly more favorable economic conditions than those applied to Alitalia. ITA will also halve the number of leasing companies from the twelve used by Alitalia under Extraordinary Administration to manage its fleet to six partners of proven financial strength that will cooperate with the airline in the process of expansion of the fleet from the initial 52 aircraft to 105 aircraft in 2025.
At the beginning of operations, ITA will operate a fleet of 52 aircraft, 7 wide-bodies and 45 narrow-bodies. In 2022 the fleet will rise to 78 aircraft (+26 vs 2021), including 13 wide-bodies (+6 vs 2021) and 65 narrow-bodies (+20 vs 2021). From 2022, new generation aircraft will gradually join the fleet replacing old technology aircraft. At the end of 2025 the fleet will rise to 105 aircraft (23 wide-bodies and 82 narrow-bodies), with 81 new-generation aircraft (77% of the entire fleet).
The deliveries of new Airbus jets will begin from the end of the first quarter of 2022, thus starting the process of expansion and conversion of the initial ITA fleet to a new generation of more efficient and environmentally friendly aircraft, equipped with the best technologies and state-of-the-art cabins to guarantee maximum comfort to travelers. Furthermore, the choice of a single supplier allows to overcome the limitations on flexibility in crew management and obtain greater efficiency in the supply of aircraft spare parts and maintenance activities. In addition, ITA has also agreed with Airbus to become a strategic partner for new technologies and the next generation of sustainable aerospace.
ITA’s beginning of operations in 2021 will be mainly focused on routes operated on the basis of their profitability, with the addition of a selected number of routes that, although not immediately profitable, are considered as investments to ensure a sustainable presence in the medium term on markets of interest for the Country. ITA will focus its business on the Rome Fiumicino hub and Milan Linate airport where it will position itself as the reference airline for business and leisure traffic. At the beginning of operations, the airline will fly to 45 destinations with 61 routes, growing to 74 destinations and 89 routes by 2025, at the conclusion of the rebalancing process of flights towards the long-haul sector, which is aimed at bridging the connectivity gap of the Country.
