ITA Airways Airbus A320neo
Lufthansa Group will exercise the call option on ITA Airways in June and take up another 49 percent in the Italian airline, taking its share to 90 percent. Group CEO Carsten Spohr announced this news today at the annual general meeting in Frankfurt. Lufthansa is paying €325 million for the transaction, which should be completed in Q1 2027.
The transaction is subject to approval of the European Commission and the US Department of Justice. This will likely result in further remedy packages.
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Lufthansa announced a 41 percent share in ITA in May 2023 for €325 million, while MEF invested €250 million. The deal got final approval from the European Commission only in November 2024, as it required a mix of remedies. This included giving up slots at Milan Linate, Rome Fiumicino, and seven other airports to short-haul remedy taker easyJet and to long-haul remedy takers Air France-KLM and International Airlines Group (IAG)/British Airways.
Ahead of schedule
Since January 2025, the partial integration of ITA within Lufthansa Group has been completed ahead of schedule and within the planned 18 months. ITA joined the Lufthansa loyalty program Miles & More in April. Last month, it also fully joined Star Alliance. The ITA Airways fleet offers belly cargo capacity equivalent to three Boeing 777Fs, Spohr said. ITA Airways contributed to Lufthansa Group’s 2025 earnings by €90 million.
The only exception to the integration is the North Atlantic network and ITA joining the A++ joint venture with United Airlines, Lufthansa Group and Air Canada. This requires approval from the US DoJ and DoT, but ITA CEO Joerg Eberhart said last month that a filing will be issued as soon as Lufthansa Group has decided on the call option.
In a media statement, Eberhart said today: “This new phase represents a step of major industrial and strategic significance for ITA Airways. Over the past few years, we have built a solid, recognisable company focused on quality, thanks to the contribution of our people and the trust of our customers, and Deutsche Lufthansa’s decision is a clear demonstration of the good work carried out so far.”
Last year, ITA Airways reported an EBIT of €25 million and a net profit of €209 million, the first profit for ITA and an Italian flag carrier in over 20 years. Eberhart acknowledged that it takes more to achieve sustainable profitability. His team wants to reduce costs and improve productivity. Leasing contracts for 64 aircraft weighed heavily on the airline last year, costing €100 million. Further integration within the Lufthansa Group should give ITA access to more favourable conditions, as the group can get better rates. Technical fleet management and MRO are other areas where ITA and Lufthansa will benefit from the full integration.
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