EU approves remedies from Lufthansa-ITA Airways deal

The European Commission has approved the package of remedies proposed to allow Lufthansa to take a minority stake in Italian carrier ITA Airways.

EasyJet will be the big winner as it has been granted slots to enable it to expand operations at both Milan Linate and Rome Fiumicino airports from spring 2025.

Meanwhile IAG’s British Airways and Air France-KLM will benefit from additional slots, which will allow them to offer improved connections on one-stop routes between Italy and North America via their own European hubs.

The commission’s decision to approve the remedies means that Lufthansa’s purchase of a 41 per cent stake in ITA from the Italian government can finally be completed.

This deal was originally announced in May 2023 and was approved by the commission following a competition investigation in July 2024. This process saw Lufthansa and the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) make a series of commitments to release slots at Italian airports to other airlines. 

In a statement, the commission said it had “concluded that easyJet, IAG and AF-KLM are suitable remedy takers for each of the short-haul, long-haul and Milan Linate commitments”.

EasyJet said it would open new bases at Milan Linate and Rome Fiumicino airports in spring 2025 following the transfer of slots released by Lufthansa and ITA.

The budget carrier said it would base five aircraft at Linate and three at Rome as part of this expansion in Italy.

Kenton Jarvis, easyJet’s CFO and incoming CEO, said: “We are pleased to be approved as the short-haul remedy taker in Milan and Rome.

“This will ensure the Italian market remains competitive, with easyJet now able to offer a wider choice of destinations and low fares for Italian consumers, with those flying to and from Linate and Rome benefiting from new services from spring onwards.”

On the long-haul remedies, the commission added: “Lufthansa and the MEF had to enter into agreements with rivals to improve their competitiveness on the long-haul routes of concern between Italy and North America, for instance through interlining agreements or slot swaps.

“This would lead to increased frequencies of non-stop flights and/or improved connections for one-stop flights on each of the routes.”