The airport slots at Milan-Linate airport, the Italy-Central Europe routes, the long-haul connections to the United States and Canada. These are the three main issues on which the national carriers ITA Airways and Lufthansa must intervene to improve their merger strategy. Brussels will have to decide on the offer by July 2024. At the moment, Europe considers it insufficient and there is a risk that the privatization will be rejected.

A decisive week has begun for the future of ITA-Lufthansa. Today the European Competition Commission should receive a new package of sacrifices proposed by ITA and Lufthansa to obtain the green light for the agreement from Brussels. But there are those who contest the "severe conditions" that the European Commission sets to authorize the sale of 41% of ITA to Lufthansa, while Brussels is lenient with Ryanair, which dominates the Italian domestic market with a 49.4% share.

This is what Andrea Giuricin, professor at the "Bicocca" University of Milan, underlines in his study "Competition in the aviation market in Italy": Brussels is targeting the Rome-Tokyo route operated by ITA, but the professor believes that prices do not they will increase crazily after the merger with Lufthansa, as no other company is interested in this route. The study also considers competition on indirect intercontinental flights departing from Bologna, Florence or Naples to be guaranteed. This week the two betrothed will send their proposals to Brussels.

On the same topic, see also the article published by AVIONEWS.