Alitalia will fly to Washington D.C. from Rome beginning in Summer of 2019 with an A330 fives times weekly.

https://www.corriere.it/cronache/18_ott ... resh_ce-cp (Article in Italian)
https://twitter.com/e_russell/status/10 ... 3960043520

According to Italian aviation forum the route seems to be confirmed, eff from 02MAY19

AZ618 FCO0930 – 1330IAD 332 x23
AZ619 IAD1615 – 0700+1FCO 332 x23


So Alitalia is resuming Washington D.C. service after 13 years hiatus.

Why was Alitalia away for so long, 13 years ? Washington would seem a natural destination for them along with ORD, BOS and JFK, which they have flown too for decades. Atlanta & Detroit would seem natural cities too since they are Delta hubs flown by AF & KLM.

News:

"Alitalia will fly.....in Summer of 2019"!

I haven't seen this confirmed on airlineroute.net, but if true, this is great news. I've always felt that IAD was a missing hole in the Alitalia network despite all of its struggles.

Alitalia will have to compete with UA on this route. But with the right strategy I believe this could work well

LIPZ wrote:

According to Italian aviation forum the route seems to be confirmed, eff from 02MAY19

AZ618 FCO0930 – 1330IAD 332 x23
AZ619 IAD1615 – 0700+1FCO 332 x23


So Alitalia is resuming Washington D.C. service after 13 years hiatus.

Alitalia's website confirms this schedule... flights are now bookable.

I actually mentioned in the DC/VA/MD thread recently that I was surprised how long it's been that they left. There are a few very conspicuous European carriers missing from IAD, and Alitalia was certainly one of them. It'll be good to see them finally return, assuming they're still around by then I'm sure they will be though...they can seemingly survive through anything.

Will this be seasonal?

Great either way.

International network continues to fill in nicely. A couple more destinations in S. America (Buenos Aires, Santiago, La Paz) and Asia/Oceana (Sydney, Jakarta, Bangkok, Shanghai) would be great.

MWAA Press Release regarding the new IAD - FCO service: http://www.flydulles.com/iad/alitalia-a ... 1523372088

"Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) announced Tuesday that Italian airline Alitalia will begin five weekly nonstop flights to Rome Fiumicino International Airport (FCO) on May 2, 2019, providing a new option when traveling between the U.S. Capital Region and Europe.

“As the international gateway to the Washington, D.C., region, Dulles International welcomes Alitalia,” said Jack Potter, president and chief executive officer of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. “Alitalia’s newly announced year-round service to Rome further enhances the connectivity and choice available for business travelers and tourists on both sides of the Atlantic.”

Dulles International will become Alitalia’s sixth passenger service gateway in the United States. The airline, a SkyTeam partner, flies to Rome and beyond with more than 3,600 weekly flights while providing connections across the Delta, Air France-KLM and Virgin Atlantic networks. Service details include:

Flight No. From To Departure / Arrival Days of Operation
AZ 619 IAD FCO 16:15 / 07:00+1 Monday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday
AZ 618 FCO IAD 09:30 / 13:30 Monday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday

The new route will be operated using an Airbus A330-200, carrying 249 passengers in a three class configuration, with 19 in Magnifica business class, 17 in premium economy and 213 in economy. Passengers across all three classes enjoy a sophisticated dining experience—with award-winning menus featuring regional Italian cuisine and premium wines selected by Alitalia’s official sommelier in collaboration with the Italian Sommelier Foundation."

BTW, this is the first time in decades (and most likely, ever) that AZ flies to the DC area.

AZ flew IAD-MXP with MD-11s in the early 2000s.

AZ has been flying to ORD and LAX... but not IAD?!? If this airline's financial struggles and lack of vision weren't widely known, I'd be shocked, but this is Alitalia after all!

I fear United might pull out of this route now that Alitalia will start it :/ I hope not, but United seems to pull out of markets when a competitor enters

capitalflyer wrote:

Will this be seasonal?

Great either way.

International network continues to fill in nicely. A couple more destinations in S. America (Buenos Aires, Santiago, La Paz) and Asia/Oceana (Sydney, Jakarta, Bangkok, Shanghai) would be great.

Are you kidding? AZ has been flying to EZE since prehistoric times and relaunched SCL two years ago... LPB? Not a chance.

flybry wrote:

I fear United might pull out of this route now that Alitalia will start it :/ I hope not, but United seems to pull out of markets when a competitor enters

Flew that IAD-FCO couple months ago on 763, majority of people were connecting in Dulles, so I think UAL will keep this seasonal route

I know I'm just an armchair CEO but I'm left wondering how Alitalia will really make money on this route. N.America feed at IAD from Delta is unlikely to be anything spectacular and Rome is a long way down the Italian boot - it's at least an hour of flying south of Milan. Rome would make a natural hub for USA-Balkan traffic rather than Italy-USA traffic.

If Alitalia just want to load up on VFR traffic and tourists visiting the Colosseum then great for them, but I'm puzzled as to how they will get those bums on seats in November or February

IIRC, Iberia was serving IAD a couple of years ago as well.

Mistral1 wrote:

capitalflyer wrote:

Will this be seasonal?

Great either way.

International network continues to fill in nicely. A couple more destinations in S. America (Buenos Aires, Santiago, La Paz) and Asia/Oceana (Sydney, Jakarta, Bangkok, Shanghai) would be great.

Are you kidding? AZ has been flying to EZE since prehistoric times and relaunched SCL two years ago... LPB? Not a chance.

I think he was referring to airlines serving those destinations from IAD...which also doesn't stand a chance.

I will say that the DMV area is on track to become the third largest metro area in the country, and IIRC it is also the most affluent, but the lack of year-round service to some destinations surprises me. I would have thought that IAD would have had a BR flight to TPE by now, and I would have assumed that the airport would have had PVG service.

LupineChemist wrote:

News:

"Alitalia will fly.....in Summer of 2019"!

That's what I was thinking!

Oh AZ will be flying in the summer of 2019 indeed. Also, Italy is in huge demand for the season that AZ will operate. UA gets a very high $ for it's non-stop so this might provide some competition, but AZ isn't known for its low fare offerings in the summer really.

Mistral1 wrote:

capitalflyer wrote:

Will this be seasonal?

Great either way.

International network continues to fill in nicely. A couple more destinations in S. America (Buenos Aires, Santiago, La Paz) and Asia/Oceana (Sydney, Jakarta, Bangkok, Shanghai) would be great.

Are you kidding? AZ has been flying to EZE since prehistoric times and relaunched SCL two years ago... LPB? Not a chance.

Not a chance, and also good luck getting anything with a reasonable payload out of LPB.

Does anybody know exactly what the restrictions AF/KL put on AZ in TATL flying? I was under the impression that AZ was restricted in how many flights it could add.

simpv wrote:

Does anybody know exactly what the restrictions AF/KL put on AZ in TATL flying? I was under the impression that AZ was restricted in how many flights it could add.

Further to that question, does anybody know when the JV between DL and AZ runs out? I was under the impression that AZ is not included in the amended joint venture that was applied for in July 2017, but I don't know when this amended joint venture will actually be in force?

Link to amended joint venture application report, sans Alitalia: https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... ct-450560/

IADFCO wrote:

BTW, this is the first time in decades (and most likely, ever) that AZ flies to the DC area.

More like 12 years, but who's counting?

What on earth are you talking about? That is absolutely not always the case. United started SFO/Singapore nonstop... and then Singapore started SFO -Singapore nonstop. United didn’t retreat... it doubled down and now flies twice daily nonstop. United started Dulles Dublin around 2011 and then Aer Lingus re-started the route around 2014/2015... and united still flies the route. United started Chicago-Hong Kong nonstop in 1996 and cathay started nonstop in 2011.... United still flies it nonstop. United started San Francisco-Sydney in the 1990s and Qantas started a nonstop in 2003, dropped it in 2007, then came back in 2011. United still flies sfo-syd. What planet are you on?

flybry wrote:

I fear United might pull out of this route now that Alitalia will start it :/ I hope not, but United seems to pull out of markets when a competitor enters

Rome is one of the biggest tourist attractions / destinations in the world. For thousands of years.

Because AZ is AZ they failed dominating Rome like others do their home turf.

hopefully we'll see the route upgraded to 77E. I think IAD-FCO has the potential

jasoncrh wrote:

What on earth are you talking about? That is absolutely not always the case. United started SFO/Singapore nonstop... and then Singapore started SFO -Singapore nonstop. United didn’t retreat... it doubled down and now flies twice daily nonstop. United started Dulles Dublin around 2011 and then Aer Lingus re-started the route around 2014/2015... and united still flies the route. United started Chicago-Hong Kong nonstop in 1996 and cathay started nonstop in 2011.... United still flies it nonstop. United started San Francisco-Sydney in the 1990s and Qantas started a nonstop in 2003, dropped it in 2007, then came back in 2011. United still flies sfo-syd. What planet are you on?

flybry wrote:

I fear United might pull out of this route now that Alitalia will start it :/ I hope not, but United seems to pull out of markets when a competitor enters

LAX-SIN, LAX-PDX, JFK-SFO, JFK-LAX, JFK-IAD, SEA-ANC, LAX-MEX, DEN-MEX, JFK-LHR, SEA-NRT, HKG-SIN, NRT-BKK, NRT-ICN, EWR-OSL, HKG-SGN, IAD-DXB

Airlines drop routes some times. Every airline has.
United still is in/ has fortified their presence in ORD-FCO (up against Alitalia, American seasonally), ORD-LHR (up against AA and BA), ORD-CDG (against AA and AF), ORD-AMS (against KL), IAD-BRU (against Brussels), IAD-FCO (Against Alitalia), IAD-PEK (Against Air China), IAD-DUB (Against Aer Lingus), ORD-HKG (Against Cathay), EWR-HKG (Against Cathay), SFO-HKG (Against Cathay), SFO-TPE (Against EVA, China Airlines), SFO-SYD (Against Qantas), LAX-SYD (Against Qantas, Virgin, Delta, American), EWR-LHR (Against Virgin, BA), EWR-BOM, EWR-DEL (both against Air India), SFO-SIN (against Singapore)

Meanwhile, American has pulled every single long haul from Chicago except London. This is the only longhaul flight they fly year round from Chicago, a city that use to have multiple year round nonstops to European cities, NRT, PEK, PVG.

Sometimes routes dont work for airliens and for one reason or another they pull out. All airlines do, not just United. But United doesnt run from all competitive markets - they fortify where it makes sense, and this partial list I've shown demonstrates that.

flybry wrote:

jasoncrh wrote:

What on earth are you talking about? That is absolutely not always the case. United started SFO/Singapore nonstop... and then Singapore started SFO -Singapore nonstop. United didn’t retreat... it doubled down and now flies twice daily nonstop. United started Dulles Dublin around 2011 and then Aer Lingus re-started the route around 2014/2015... and united still flies the route. United started Chicago-Hong Kong nonstop in 1996 and cathay started nonstop in 2011.... United still flies it nonstop. United started San Francisco-Sydney in the 1990s and Qantas started a nonstop in 2003, dropped it in 2007, then came back in 2011. United still flies sfo-syd. What planet are you on?

flybry wrote:

I fear United might pull out of this route now that Alitalia will start it :/ I hope not, but United seems to pull out of markets when a competitor enters

LAX-SIN, LAX-PDX, JFK-SFO, JFK-LAX, JFK-IAD, SEA-ANC, LAX-MEX, DEN-MEX, JFK-LHR, SEA-NRT, HKG-SIN, NRT-BKK, NRT-ICN, EWR-OSL, HKG-SGN, IAD-DXB

@USAirALB @atcsundevil -- you are absolutely right! In fact, after your posts I did some digging and found two interesting threads:
viewtopic.php?t=323411
viewtopic.php?t=416271
I may have even flown on one of those combis -- I remember getting into one for the first (and so far only) time in my life, and wondering, getting in, whether it would look unusually "short" from inside: it must have been on that route. Oh well, old age setting in, I guess.

Back to the new route. I wonder how they picked the schedule, and especially why such an early departure from FCO. Leaving, say, at 1:30pm instead of 9:30am, would have given time to people from outside Rome to take that flight, especially with better coordination with the Italian railroads (soon probably majority owners), instead of having to spend the night in Rome. Also, the current 1:30pm IAD arrival is perfectly timed for the rush hour, when the Beltway becomes a parking lot, whereas a 5:30pm arrival would avoid that and still leave time for West Coast connections. The consequent 8:15p IAD-11a FCO schedule wouldn't seem unreasonable.