The German group Lufthansa within this week could formalize its offer to acquire a stake in the capital of the air carrier ITA Airways. The negotiation on the privatization of the national airline is at a decisive turning point, but the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), currently the 100% shareholder of the national airline, must not make the same mistakes as in the past.

There is a need to positively close the negotiation with a reliable industrial partner such as Lufthansa. Otherwise the company will continue to lose money as in the last 15 months, during which the Italian State has put 1.1 billion euros on the plate of taxpayers to make ITA Airways work. According to some experts, the Meloni Government should make the airline attractive, which now holds a small market share: in 2021 it operated 3.8% of international air connections to and from Italy.

A solution could be the reduction of the weight of the municipal surtaxes, which instead some municipalities are increasing. Even more important is the fact that the State acts as a "silent partner", letting Lufthansa integrate the Italian airline into its network as best as possible. If Rome intervenes directly in management, the mistakes made in the past with the former Alitalia will most likely recur.