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Italy’s Salvini Prefers Transportation Group as Alitalia Partner

MILAN, June 14 (Reuters) – Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said on Friday an infrastructure or transportation group would be his preferred partner for troubled carrier Alitalia.

He added that he had reservations about a possible involvement of Lazio soccer club Chairman Claudio Lotito, who submitted an expression of interest for the airline this week.

Salvini’s comments put pressure on Industry Minister Luigi Di Maio, who is also the leader of the 5-Star Movement and has been handling the Alitalia crisis since the coalition government took office last year.

Di Maio has already had to postpone the deadline for the rescue of the carrier three times and the latest extension is due to expire on Saturday with every expectation it will have to be prolonged yet again as the search for a solution continues.

Italy’s state-owned railway group Ferrovie dello Stato is spearheading an effort to set up a consortium of investors to buy loss-making Alitalia, which is managed by administrators.

So far Ferrovie has secured the commitment of Delta Air Lines but it is struggling to find another partner who is willing to invest more than 300 million euros ($336 million) in Alitalia, which has a long history of financial woe.

Salvini, who is the head of coalition party League, said caution was needed in picking the right partners.

“We are talking about a company (Alitalia) with 11,000 employees, which has a potential U.S. partner (Delta) with dozens of billions in sales, that deals with infrastructure and airplanes,” Salvini told reporters in Milan.

“As far as I know, Lotito, at present, just lets lads play soccer,” he added.

One source with knowledge of the matter told Reuters that Ferrovie had recently had talks with infrastructure group Atlantia over Alitalia, but added that its involvement in any accord still lacked the necessary political green-light.

Di Maio and other 5-Star officials strongly criticised Atlantia over the deadly collapse of a motorway bridge managed by the group, which killed 43 people last August.

After the disaster the government said it would revoke Atlantia’s motorway concession, accusing the company of poor maintenance of its road network.

Atlantia has denied any wrongdoing and could join the Alitalia consortium as a way to mend its relationship with the government, sources had told Reuters. The company, which is controlled by the Benetton group, denied on Wednesday that it had reached a deal to join the rescue.

($1 = 0.8923 euros)

(Reporting by Francesca Piscioneri, Writing by Francesca Landini; Editing by Crispian Balmer)

Delta & Aeromexico Celebrate Second Year of Key Partnership

Story by Sarah Lora

The two airlines have jointly transported more than 14.4 million passengers since the Joint Cooperation Agreement launched.

  • Highlights include introducing eight new routes and two new joint destinations in Mexico, strengthening the network’s power in the transborder market.
  • Airlines have eliminated 80% percent of the differences in service and standardized processes to create a seamless travel experience.

Since Delta Air Lines and Aeromexico departed together on a journey to pioneer the first transborder airline alliance between the U.S. and Mexico, more than 14.4 million passengers have benefitted from the carriers’ integration during the last two years.

Today, Delta and Aeromexico jointly offer more than 1,100 weekly flights on 64 routes between 11 cities in Mexico and 33 in the U.S. The Joint Cooperation Agreement has launched eight new routes and two new joint destinations in Mexico, and allowed terminal co-location in 12 airports in the U.S., 10 of which are Delta hubs, and three Aeromexico hubs in Mexico.

As seamless as checking in at a Delta terminal and boarding an Aeromexico plane, “our goal is creating a familiar travel experience with standards that are common across Delta and Aeromexico. This partnership and the integration of both airlines allow us to offer a more powerful network, more benefits and standard policies, which result in a seamless service,” said Nicolas Ferri, Delta’s Vice President— Latin America and Alliances Americas.

True to its word, the JCA has so far eliminated 80% of the differences in services and has standardized many processes, such as purchasing tickets online or benefitting from loyalty programs. On board, customers will find uniformity on Delta and Aeromexico cabins, seat selection and checked and carry-on baggage policies; parallel access to Gogo’s WiFi portal and free text messaging; as well as having Spanish-speaking crew members on all transborder flights.

“Although the integration of commercial processes, products, airports and sales teams has been a great challenge, communicating with a cohesive voice has facilitated that assimilation. While Delta and Aeromexico have distinct and unique looks, we respect each other and share the same vision: to provide the best of each to our customers,” said Paul Verhagen, Aeromexico’s Senior Vice President – International Sales.

Providing the best isn’t limited to the airport experience. From sponsoring the Mexican National Soccer Team to the Latin GRAMMY Acoustic Sessions in Miami, L.A. and Mexico City, Delta and Aeromexico are committed to supporting the communities they serve. The airlines aim to foster unity, diversity and to uphold corporate values through their sponsorships of a variety of sporting and cultural events in both Mexico and the United States.

“Such a historic alliance between two iconic airlines is about making travel between the two carriers easier for customers. By working together, we have shared and applied best practices and business solutions, bringing our individual strengths into the partnership,” added Ferri.

Delta and Aeromexico sales professionals have formed a fully integrated sales team dedicated to promoting both operators in the U.S. and Mexican markets. Routes have been increasingly added throughout the two years under the JCA, strengthening the power of the network in the transborder market.

Customers from Atlanta can enjoy nonstop access to nine cities in Mexico including Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey. The JCA also operates direct flights from New York, Detroit, Minneapolis, Salt Lake City, Seattle, and Los Angeles to multiple business and leisure points in Mexico.

Connectivity is crucial to driving business and boosting the economy of both countries, while offering customers the possibility of discovering new experiences through Delta and Aeromexico’s distinctive service in the coming years.​

Austin FC Begin MLS Play in 2021 as league’s 27th club

Austin FC is set to begin play in MLS in 2021 as the league’s 27th club, commissioner Don Garber announced Tuesday. The club will become the city’s first team in a major professional sports league. 

The announcement was made at Rustic Tap in Austin’s West Sixth district, with Garber alongside Austin FC chairman/CEO Anthony Precourt and Austin mayor Steve Adler. The club will soon build a privately funded, $225 million soccer stadium at McKalla Place. Groundbreaking will begin this year on the 20,000-seat stadium, which planned to be completed in time for the club’s first match.

“Austin is a thriving metropolitan city – the personification of what we mean when we say MLS is a ‘League for a new America,’” Garber said in a league release. “We are extremely proud to be the first major professional sports league to become part of the culture of this historic American city. In their support of a world-class soccer stadium that benefits everyone, the leadership of the City of Austin has shown tremendous faith in our league and game, and Anthony Precourt has paved the way for Austin FC to have great success on and off the field. To the people of Austin and the surrounding community, welcome to Major League Soccer.”

Austin FC will become the third MLS club in Texas, joining FC Dallas and the Houston Dynamo. Austin is the country’s 11th largest city and was selected by U.S. News and World Report in each of the last two years as the No. 1 place in the nation to live.

“This is a very proud moment for Precourt Sports Ventures, and we share it with the people of Austin, City leadership, the dedicated soccer fans of the region, and everyone who believed in our mission to bring Major League Soccer to this incredible community,” Precourt said. “The greatest way we can show our gratitude is in our actions as leaders of Austin FC. Our pledge is to build three essential pillars: a team that will be a perennial contender for MLS Cup, a stadium at McKalla Place that rivals the best sporting venues in North America, and a club that will bring people together and always give back.”

Said Mayor Adler: “This is a historic day for Austin, as MLS becomes the first major league to plant roots in our beautiful city. We believe professional soccer will bring a great and especially needed benefit to our city. In two years, this team and an elite soccer stadium will bring together all kinds of people from all over Austin in a way that we do not gather today. This is one important way we become a more socially integrated community. Thank you to Precourt Sports Ventures and MLS for bringing this opportunity to all the residents of Austin!”

Story and image from http://www.mlssoccer.com