The Italian carrier leaves SkyTeam to enter into Star Alliance in 1H2026

From the use of frequent flyer programs, moving of flight operations at airport terminals, lounge access, code-sharing, coordinated European flight schedule– customers will already be able to see the benefits of the integration. shortly after the Lufthansa Group's concluded participation in ITA Airways. At a press conference in Rome, Carsten Spohr, CEO of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Sandro Pappalardo, Chairman of ITA Airways, and Joerg Eberhart, CEO of ITA Airways, presented the first concrete steps and improvements for customers.

With immediate effect, 36 million Miles & More members can earn and redeem miles on all ITA Airways flights. At the same time, the 2.7 million members of the ITA Airways frequent flyer program Volare can earn and redeem their points on all flights operated by Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian Airlines and Brussels Airlines.

With the start of the summer flight schedule on March 30, 2025, passengers of ITA Airways and Lufthansa Group can enjoy the following benefits:

Under one roof in Frankfurt and Munich: Using the same terminal is an essential prerequisite for quick and comfortable transfers at the Lufthansa Group's hubs. With the start of the upcoming Summer flight schedule, ITA Airways will move into the Lufthansa Airlines terminals in Frankfurt and Munich – into Terminal 1 in Frankfurt and into Terminal 2 in Munich. This will significantly reduce passengers' transfer times. At all other hubs of the group,as well as in Rome-Fiumicino and Milan-Linate, the Lufthansa Group airlines already offer their flights in the same terminal areas as ITA Airways.

Lounge access: Starting 30 March, ITA Airways passengers will also be ableto visit and use the approximately 130 lounges of the Lufthansa Group and itspartners on their travels. The lounges of ITA Airways will also be open toLufthansa Group passengers from this date.

Code sharing: By adding ITA Airways flights to the route networks of Lufthansa Group Airlines, customers will have more choice and greater flexibility. With the start of the Summer flight schedule, more than 100 flight connections will initially share their flight numbers and can thus be more easily combined. These code-shares make it possible to combine flights of different airlines in the group into a single booking. Once fully implemented, this code-sharing will give ITA Airways passengers access to over 250 destinations of the Lufthansa Group. For passengers of the Lufthansa Group airlines, the offer will be expanded to include ITA Airways domestic flights to Sicily, Sardinia, Calabria and Puglia. All code-share connections can be booked from 25 February through all global sales channels, including online and via the Lufthansa Group and ITA Airways apps.

Coordinated flight schedules between the hubs: The flight connections between the Lufthansa Group's hubs (Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Vienna and Brussels) and ITA Airways' two main airports (Rome and Milan) are optimized and better distributed throughout the day to offer guests more travel flexibility.Coordinated departure times mean less waiting time for guests and better connections to long-haul destinations.

Change of airline alliance: In the future, ITA Airways passengers will also be able to take advantage of all the product benefits of the Lufthansa Group. The Italian airline's admission to Star Alliance, the biggest global aviation alliance, is of crucial importance for this. Preparations have already begun. ITA Airways' official accession to the Star Alliance is planned for the first half early 2026. Accordingly, ITA Airways already initiated the withdrawal from the Sky Team alliance.

The cooperation between ITA Airways and Lufthansa Cargo is also to be quickly intensified in the airfreight sector. The first joint offers for freight customers will be available on selected routes as early as the upcoming Summer.

Carsten Spohr, CEO of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, says: “Now that ITA Airways has become a member of our airline family a few days ago, we want to push ahead with the merger quickly, so that ITA and its passengers, as well as the guests of our other passenger airlines, can quickly benefit from the advantages of an expanded Lufthansa Group. We are also confident that ITA Airways will realize a profit as early as this year. All in all, we are convinced that today, the start of the integration of ITA Airways into the Lufthansa Group,marks the beginning of a joint success story for customers, employees and shareholders of ITA Airways and the Lufthansa Group".

See for details AVIONEWS.