ITA Airways is ramping up its transatlantic operations with the launch of a new route between Rome Fiumicino Airport and Toronto Pearson International Airport. The inaugural flight is scheduled for May 10, 2024, marking ITA’s first direct entry into Canada. This expansion is part of the airline’s broader focus on North America, following its recent launch of a Chicago service.
The Toronto route will initially operate six times a week, utilizing Airbus A330 aircraft. During the peak summer months between June and September, the frequency will increase to daily service to accommodate the surge in travel demand. ITA’s Chief Commercial Officer, Emiliana Limosani, emphasized the significance of the route, stating that it is a major product offering for ITA Airways, strengthening connections to North America, which ranks as the airline’s largest market after Italy.
The new route aligns with ITA’s strategic focus on North America for its Summer 2024 season development. In October, Limosani announced the airline’s plans to expand its intercontinental network in the summer of 2024, with a particular emphasis on North America. The Toronto route, along with the previously launched Chicago service, underscores this commitment to North American expansion.
The Airbus A330 aircraft selected for the Toronto route offer a mix of A330-200s and A330-900neos. The newer A330-900neos provide an exceptional travel experience with a three-class layout featuring 237 economy class seats in a 2-4-2 configuration, 24 premium economy seats in a 2-4-2 configuration, and 30 business class seats in a 1-2-1 configuration. The older A330-200s, which will operate certain frequencies, have 219 economy class seats in a 2-4-2 layout, 17 premium economy seats in a 2-3-2 layout, and 20 business class seats in a 1-2-1 layout.
ITA Airways currently has seven A330-200 aircraft in its fleet, with an average age of 12.6 years. The A330-900 fleet is larger, with nine presently in service and a further eight on order. Given their recent induction into the fleet, the A330-900s have an average age of just five months. Two additional A330-900neos are expected to join the fleet next month, bolstering capacity for the summer season.
ITA Airways’ expansion into North America coincides with ongoing discussions in Brussels regarding the airline’s planned merger into the Lufthansa Group. Lufthansa aims to acquire a 41% stake in ITA, eventually taking complete control. However, the European Union’s antitrust authority has raised competition concerns related to some of the airline’s routes, particularly those to North America.
Long-haul flights provide a much-needed financial lifeline for ITA Airways, given the intense competition in the domestic market from European low-cost airlines such as Ryanair, Wizz Air, Volotea, and easyJet. To avoid repeating the heavy losses incurred by its predecessor, Alitalia, ITA has shifted its focus to new routes and fleet renewal.
The European Commission’s concerns stem from the potential for a Lufthansa-ITA merger to create a near-monopoly on transatlantic flights, either through direct services or one-stop connections via Lufthansa Group hubs such as Frankfurt, Munich, or Vienna. However, as Corriere della Sera points out, forcing the airlines to reduce transatlantic services could disadvantage Italy in terms of transatlantic connectivity. Instead of increasing options and lowering fares for consumers, such a requirement would have the opposite effect.
There are few other European full-service airlines with the capacity to operate transatlantic flights between Italy and North America, which means that one-stop connections would likely remain the primary option for travelers. Corriere della Sera reports that 55% of passengers traveling between Italy and the USA already connect in another country due to the limited availability of direct flights. This issue is less prevalent in other European countries, such as the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, which have a greater capacity for direct transatlantic flights.
Lufthansa and ITA have proposed an alternative solution of freezing fares on North America services. However, Italian media report that the European Commission remains unconvinced by this proposal.
