The interview

Air France-KLM aims to strengthen its presence in Italy to North America

16 May 2024

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'Ita Airways will remain our business partner until the agreement with Lufthansa is signed. Then we will see what happens, there are still many aspects to be defined. Like Air France-KLM we want to strengthen our presence in Italy towards North America, with more frequencies, together with our American partner'. Noud Duyzings, Vice President Europe of Air France-KLM is preparing to face fiercer competition in the Italian market once the European Commission has defined the agreement between Lufthansa and Ita Airways.

How do you plan to respond to the Lufthansa-Ita merger?

"Ita Airways has been our partner for years and tomorrow it will be our competitor, so it will be an important change. On the other hand, we believe we have a very strong position as Air France-KLM and Delta Air Lines in the Italian market and the recognition of our brand by our fans in Italy is a testimony to that. Last year we did a brand recognition study in Italy and Air France's brand came out number one. Italy is a key market in Europe, the second after France in terms of passenger flow. That's why we want to grow further and if I were to bet, it would be through additional frequencies with Delta.

If the merger with Lufthansa were to fail, could you get back in the game?

The former Alitalia, now Ita Airways, was a very strong partner and brought us many advantages, it still is from a commercial point of view until the agreement with Lufthansa is signed. At this time we have decided not to pursue an acquisition project or anything like that with Ita. Lufthansa sees it differently. This does not mean that our interest in the Italian market has waned. Should the merger with Lufthansa fail, it will first of all have to be seen whether Ita will remain in Sky Team, whether they will be able to go it alone or whether they will look for another partner. There are still too many uncertainties. At the moment, we are focused on our new partnership with Scandinavian Sas, in which we have taken a 19.9% stake, and we are interested in Portuguese Tap, but it depends on the conditions of privatisation.

Are you interested in looking for another partner in Italy to replace Ita?

Many Italian players could replace Ita, but I don't think we will look for a new partner in Italy. I think we will rely on the strength of our brands, our network and of course our partnership with Delta in order to strengthen our share and positioning in the Italian market. We are present in 15 Italian airports with 14 thousand frequencies, we have just inaugurated a new flight from Verona to Paris a sign of our desire to strengthen ourselves in the northern part of Italy. Our two hubs in Paris and Amsterdam connect Italian passengers to more than 300 destinations worldwide.

Italy is the European market that has grown the most since Covid and is dominated by low-cost companies. Do you fear their competition?

It's a different segment, the low cost ones have a point to point model. We want to take Italians around the world. We have invested in improving the business class and premium class product and the next step will be Air France's La Première fist class.

What are your predictions for next summer?

Demand is still strong and bookings solid, capacity this year will increase by 5% compared to 2023, while compared to pre-Covid we are around 95%. America is doing very well while Asia is recovering more slowly. There is a capacity problem for KLM due to delays in deliveries of Boeing's 787 Dreamliner aircraft. In this first quarter, we have experienced maintenance delays related to the spare parts supply chain, which is a worldwide problem.

In a few weeks, the Olipiades will start in Paris. How are you preparing?

We are partners of the Olympics and of course, as Frenchmen, we are very proud that the games are being held in Paris. We will do everything in our power to make the experience enjoyable for all athletes, delegations and tourists coming to Paris during the Olympics.

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