Italy and Chile are closer to each other thanks to Alitalia which, after 15 years, is connecting the two countries again, with a new intercontinental direct flight between Rome and Santiago.
The new connection was inaugurated on Monday evening at Rome's Fiumicino airport.
Alitalia's management stressed that the new service is not just part of the company's strategy to strengthen its presence on the long-haul market, it is also designed to help reinforce the economic ties between the two countries. It is the first time that the two countries have been connected with a direct flight: the 'old' Alitalia flew to Santiago up to 1999 with a Boeing 747, but there was a stop at Buenos Aires on the way. The first flight took off from Rome on Sunday and landed in the Chilean capital on Monday morning.
The inauguration took place with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Fiumicino airport featuring executives from Alitalia, the Aeroporti di Roma (AdR) airport company and the Chilean Ambassador to Italy, Fernando Ayala. ENEL CEO Francesco Starace was present too and he said he was "happy and grateful" to Alitalia for having brought Chile "closer". Alitalia President Luca Cordero di Montezemolo stressed that the Rome-Santiago connection was just one of three new intercontinental services that the company is launching - with a flight to Mexico City starting on June 16 and a service to Beijing kicking off on July 18. "With this new route, the first of three that we will open in 2016, we are reinforcing the economic ties between Italy and Chile and we will continue to grow our presence in South America," Montezemolo said.
He added that the recently revamped company was "starting to see the first results in economic and customer terms" and he confirmed the target of being profitable in 2017. CEO Cramer Ball said that the new service made Alitalia "the company of reference for connections to Latin America". He added: "the direct Rome-Santiago flight also entails important economic benefits in terms of trade between the two countries because it will facilitate Italian investment in Chile and Chilean investment in Italy". AdR CEO Ugo De Carolis revealed that the 11,877 Km, 15-hour flight is the longest non-stop service running from Fiumicino airport.
"The launch of this connection by Alitalia is part of a broader strategy perused by Aeroporti di Roma to grow in the long-haul markets," said De Carolis. The new connection features 5 flights a week with a Boeing 777, the flagship of the Alitalia fleet.
It is a 293-seat aircraft, split into three classes, with a completely renovated cabin.
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