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NEWS | Sunday, 09 September 2007

Ryanair demand Bologna, Air Malta for Malpensa

matthew vella

Ryanair sources yesterday said the low cost carrier was stamping its feet over the Malta-Bologna route which earlier this week was vacated by Italian airline Meridiana. The Irish carrier wants to operate the Forli (Bologna) route because it says it was part of an informal “deal” with government over a mixed winter package of long-haul and short-haul flights. Sources said the government declined giving Ryanair the Trapani route, instead offering Bari. Ryanair said it needed an Italian short-haul route to balance out its long-haul flights to Bremen, Valencia and Stockholm. But its request for the Bologna route, which is now vacant, has so far been also declined by the government. Sources said the government’s intransigence “may jeopardise” Ryanair’s winter schedule. In the meantime, Air Malta is trying to gain a greater foothold in Milan’s Malpensa airport as Italian airline Alitalia prepares to cut 150 routes to the Milanese hub of Malpensa to relocate further to Rome Fiumicino. It is understood that Milan’s catchment area is being closely guarded by Air Malta after Ryanair made its own wish to take over the Bologna route – which is three hours by car away from Milan. Alitalia’s decision means Air Malta intends scaling up its activity to Italy. Other interested airlines include Alpi eagles, AirOne and Etihad – all having signalled their interest in taking up the routes Alitalia may be expected to cut. Milan mayor Letizia Moratti has drawn up a charter for a new industrial plan for Alitalia. “Alitalia must not renounce its global vocation… vacating Malpensa would mean abandoning the North of Italy and relegating the airline to a regional one. Malpensa is the future of Italy in global aviation.” According to Roberto Formigoni, the president of the Lombardy region, any company chosen to take over the routes will have to “do everything Alitalia had promised in these last years, but which failed to keep.”



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