Alitalia, the flag carrier of Italy, has launched its direct daily service between New Delhi and Rome. The airline, which returned to India after a gap of almost a decade, decided to launch this new service to meet the increasing demand for flights between the two countries. Fabio Lazzerini, chief commercial officer, Alitalia, was present during a special meet held in New Delhi. He stated, “In 2015, over 426,000 Indian travellers came to Italy, recording a 49.7 per cent increase in comparison to last year. The numbers showcase the importance of India as a growing market for Italy. Alitalia launches this new connection as part of its winter season campaign.”
He further added, “Passenger departing from Delhi will arrive at the Rome Fiumicino airport and will have connection to 39 cities in Italy, Europe, North Africa and America including cultural destinations like Florence, Pisa, Venice and Paris. The departure, scheduled at 4:20 am from Delhi, is ideal for domestic connections from cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Jaipur, Varanasi, Ahmedabad among many others.”
Commenting on the competition in the India market, he expressed, “We are reinvesting in the country as we see huge potential in the growing market. The idea is not to steal business from other airlines but to add on new services for the increasing number of travellers. There is no comparison to other connection on the same route with our unique product.”
The airline will be majorly relying on the trade industry for passenger flow. “Only 30 per cent of our worldwide sales is through online bookings. The rest 70 per cent is through trade partners. Similarly we will be working closely with our trade partners in India to grow passenger numbers. We are looking at more of trade business than leisure travel. We are expecting 70 per cent load factor in the month of November to 80 per cent in December.”
The airline will be appointing a 250-seater Airbus A330 on this route offering business, premium economy and economy class. Lazzerini, mentioned, “Our business class known as Magnifica ensures a comfortable journey. Known for its exquisite food and service, we ensure best hospitality once on board an Alitalia plane.”