Alitalia to resume Korea service in June

By Kim Rahn

Silvano Cassano Alitalia CEO

ROME, Italy ― Italy’s flagship airline Alitalia will begin flying to Korea again on June 4, 18 years after it stopped the service in the aftermath of the Asian financial crisis.

The renewed service is part of the carrier’s strategy to expand services to Asia, where air traffic is growing significantly.

“We are focusing on Asian markets, and the service between Rome and Seoul is one of the most important among them,” CEO Silvano Cassano told Korean reporters at the headquarters in Rome on Wednesday.

“It is a huge investment and our expectation is also huge,” he said.

Chief commercial officer Ariodante Valeri said that the number of Asian tourists traveling to Europe and trade between the two continents were increasing rapidly. Besides the Seoul-Rome route, Alitalia is opening four more routes to Asia this year alone ― Rome-Beijing, Milan-Abu Dhabi, Venice-Abu Dhabi and Milan-Shanghai.

Korean Air has been the only carrier operating between Korea and Italy. Valeri said Alitalia would offer another option for direct flights, and that reservations were good.

“We hope that resuming service will bring more Korean people to Rome,” he said. “Italian tourists have visited China and Japan more than Korea, but we believe a growing number of Italians will choose Korea with the new operation.”

While three weekly flights with 250 seats are scheduled to operate, Alitalia may increase the frequency if there is enough demand.

Korean food will be available for in-flight meals, along with Italian food and wine. The carrier is also recruiting Italian-speaking Korean flight attendants.

Valeri agreed that Alitalia had been criticized for poor in-flight service. He said all relevant staff would attend service improvement courses run by Etihad Airways, which took a 49 percent stake in Alitalia last year.

“We are listening to what our customers say, and there will be a lot of changes in our service,” he said.