New Alitalia plans Zagreb flights
Italy's state railway Ferrovie dello Stato has chosen the Atlantia transport group and US airline Delta as partners to reboot the ailing Alitalia. Under its three-year development plan starting from 2020, the carrier intends to launch flights from Rome to Zagreb, among others, as well as strengthen its seasonal operations to Split and Dubrovnik, local media report. Alitalia previously outlined plans to commence flights to the Croatian capital back in 2014, however, the route never materialised. The Italian carrier maintained up to two daily flights to Zagreb prior to its bankruptcy in 2008. The new Alitalia, which is expected to focus on boosting long haul flights while cutting unprofitable routes, also plans on introducing services from Rome to Vienna and Bucharest.
There are currently no nonstop flights between Zagreb and Rome with Croatia Airlines serving the route via both Dubrovnik and Split. The carrier strengthened its presence in Italy in 2011 with the introduction of seasonal services between Dubrovnik and Venice and six years later with the launch of seasonal flights from Zagreb to Milan. Alitalia currently codeshares on Air Serbia's service between Belgrade and Zagreb. In 2018, 1.148.078 Italians visited Croatia, representing an increase of 3.4% on the year before. According to data released last week by the Zagreb Tourist Board, Italy was the fifth biggest source of tourists to the Croatian capital, with the third largest number of overnight stays.
Alitalia declared bankruptcy two years ago and has long struggled against competition from low cost carriers. The airline has not turned a profit since 2002, has lost market share, and is propped up by state loans totalling 900 million euros. The money is supposed to be paid back with interest but this may never happen due to continuing government efforts to support the company. The European Commission has an ongoing state aid investigation into the matter. Ferrovie dello Stato has until September 15 to formally present its business plan for the struggling carrier, as well as a binding offer.
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