Despite heavy concerns from Brussels and keen criticism from laudamotion mother Ryanair, the Italian government is sticking to its controversial plans to nationalize Alitalia. The next two weeks will be decisive for the establishment of a new state company to take over Alitalia, says Transport Minister Paola De Micheli.
The new company will have a fleet of around 100 machines. According to the Italian news agency ANSA, the government minister said the government would do its utmost to maintain around 11,000 jobs at Alitalia.
The government is also working on a large-scale plan to restart the airports after the corona crisis. This is intended to increase the efficiency of the airport system, the minister said.
Plans to restart Alitalia had triggered Ryanair chief Michael O’Leary’s critical reaction. “We are ready to file a lawsuit in Brussels for unlawful state aid to save Alitalia,” announced the head of the Laudamotion mother in an interview with the Roman daily “La Repubblica” on Saturday.
The Italian government is relying on “North Korean-style rules” to save Alitalia, O’Leary protested. The boss of the low-cost airline is angry that the government in Rome is making three billion euros available for the rescue of the airline. The three billion euros are just another money that Alitalia will “burn”, said O’Leary. The government was the referee of a single player game, O’Leary criticized.
The allegations made by the Ryanair chief were firmly rejected by the Italian unions. “O’Leary is the first to impose North Korean-style laws on his company by banning employees from union relationships,” criticized Fabrizio Cuscito, spokesman for the Filt Cgil union.
The president of the Association of Italian Airports Assaeroporti, Fabrizio Palenzona, warned the government of “protectionist measures” that could cause low-cost airlines to move away from Italy. He claimed 800 million euros for airport operators in this difficult phase, which could take until 2021.
Source: APA
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