On the departures board of Terminal 2 of Heathrow, the immense London airport, there are only three flights with Alitalia’s red-green livery for Friday: two on Roma, one only his Milano. They are the only post-Covid air connections of the former flag carrier airline to Italy. The new Ita ready to take off risks being canceled even those from the board. From 31 October, it will technically no longer have landing and take-off “corridors” at the airport of the British capital.
The final prank
Gives Abu Dhabi a last tile fell on the troubled Alitalia. And it tastes like a joke. It is the final legacy of Etihad, a former shareholder of Alitalia but still owner of the precious “slots” on the British airport, one of the most coveted in the world. At the end of August the Emirati airline, the last private shareholder of Alitalia before the commissioner, took back all the slots: 5 pairs of “spaces” that the failing company paid 10 thousand euros a day. That of Alitalia’s London slots is a controversial story that has been dragging on for almost 10 years. They were from Alitalia, but the company sold them to the shareholder Etihad amid many accusations of being sold off (60 million euros, but the value was decided by an independent expert). On August 31, the application to renew the slots for the next winter season expired, which IATA has set for October 31. From the Persian Gulf, Etihad has repeatedly urged Alitalia to apply. But no response came. At that point the airline decided, as a precautionary measure, to take back the “corridors”, so as not to lose them. The one between Etihad and Alitalia was a bankruptcy marriage, never really taken off, with reciprocal accusations: the Italians accuse Abu Dhabi of having depleted Alitalia (starting with the alleged sale of the slots); the Emiratis were disappointed with the Italian management.
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But by now, pouring blame ex post is a sterile exercise. The fact is: if it wants to continue flying on Heathrow, like the old Alitalia, the future Ita will have to knock on the door of the Emirs or directly on that of the airport.
“Use it or Lose it”
Etihad, which loses Alitalia as a “tenant” of its slots, still gains. Before the pandemic, Heathrow’s slots, like many other crowded airports, were allocated on the basis of the mandatory “Use it or Lose it“. If the corridors had not been used at least 50%, they would have had to be returned to the airport. When the flight “spaces” over London are resumed, Etihad should also inaugurate flights between Italy and London in order not to lose the rights. Which he has no intention of doing, because it is expensive and at the moment at a loss. But as luck favors the bold, the bold Etihad gets an unexpected gift from there it is: the global association of companies has extended theexemption from the obligation to use. So Etihad will be able to keep the slots until next summer, without having to worry about flying its planes.
London problem for Ita
For the new Ita that will start in mid-October, the first two weeks of life will be covered in London. But then he will have to decide what to do with London. There are two options on the table: either it will sign a contract from scratch with Etihad to rent the same slots as the old Alitalia, or buy them directly from Heathrow. Before Covid, London slots were nowhere to be found and very expensive; today there is availability, after many companies have left London (temporarily). And probably Ita could also find better slots, as a time slot, for business customers. In any case, however, one more problem to solve for the new company. Heathrow, among other things, is not the only London grain for the future airline: also on October 31st, there is the risk that flights from London to Linate will be canceled. This time, however, it is not Etihad’s fault, but of Brexit.