The Lufthansa Group has officially approved a sweeping plan to take near-total control of ITA Airways, the Italian flag carrier, in a deal that will see the German aviation giant pump an additional β¬325 million into the Italian operation. The investment will bring Lufthansa's total shareholding in ITA Airways from the current 41% to 90%, pending regulatory approval, with the transaction targeted to close in Q1 2027.
A β¬325 Million Capital Injection
The decision, confirmed on May 25, 2026, marks a decisive escalation of Lufthansa's 2024 entry into ITA Airways. The original deal saw Lufthansa take a 41% stake for β¬325 million, with options to acquire the remainder of the airline in stages. Today's supervisory board approval triggers the next tranche β an additional 49% stake for another β¬325 million β leaving just 10% in the hands of the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), which currently holds the residual shareholding.
What 90% Control Means For Italy's Flag Carrier
Once finalized, ITA Airways will become the fifth full-service brand inside the Lufthansa Group portfolio, joining flagship Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian Airlines and Brussels Airlines. The Italian carrier currently operates a modern fleet of Airbus A350-900s, A330-900neos, A220s and A320 family aircraft from its main bases at Rome Fiumicino (FCO) and Milan Linate (LIN). The deal gives Lufthansa unrivaled hub coverage across Europe, anchoring its presence in three of the continent's largest origin-and-destination markets β Germany, Italy and Switzerland.
A Bumpy Road Through Brussels
The original 41% acquisition faced months of European Commission scrutiny over competition concerns, ultimately approved only after Lufthansa committed to slot remedies at Milan Linate, transatlantic capacity divestitures and code-share rollbacks. Brussels regulators are expected to revisit those remedies as part of the new 90% threshold filing.
Synergies And Network Implications
Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr has repeatedly framed the ITA Airways integration as a key growth lever in a tough European market battered by record-high jet fuel prices and the ongoing 2026 Iran Crisis. The expanded ITA brand will give the Star Alliance access to ITA's premium-heavy Italy-North America corridor, particularly the lucrative Rome-New York JFK A350 nonstop and Milan-New York routes. Tamur Pamur, a senior Lufthansa executive, told the CAPA Summit in Berlin this week that the group has already cancelled 20,000 flights this year due to high fuel costs and consolidated overlapping routes, signaling that ITA's full integration will accelerate fleet rationalization across the combined group.
Compiled from publicly available aviation news sources. Featured image: AI-generated by AviationShop. This article is original editorial content; facts have been verified across multiple public sources.
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