Alitalia will not renew its partnership and ancillary joint-venture
agreements with Air France-KLM when they expire in 2017, the carrier announced
Tuesday.
The agreements are “no longer beneficial, either
commercially or strategically” as Alitalia undergoes a major turnaround plan,
CEO Silvano Cassano said in a statement. The carrier avoided bankruptcy last
year by selling a 49 percent stake to Etihad and plans to invest $800 million
over the next three years to improve its fleet and service and to develop
routes.
“[These agreements] were negotiated when Alitalia was in a
very different position" and favor the other party, Cassano continued.
“They are undermining our ability to restructure our network and the airline
effectively to achieve the long-term sustainability of our business.”
He added that Alitalia is open to a “more equitable
arrangement” with Air France-KLM. The agreements’ expiration will not affect Alitalia’s
transatlantic JV with Air France-KLM and Delta, which received antitrust
approval from the European Union this month.
Cassano told BTN
last month the carrier plans to work closely with two other airlines in which
Etihad is a minority investor, Airberlin and Jet Airways, to develop traffic
within Europe and to India. He also cited Alitalia’s “strong relationship with
Delta” as a means to increasing traffic to the United States.