Alitalia or Air France
 

We will be flying from NYC to Athens in May and right now fare by Alitalia is more but better sked than Air France. But, I have heard so many bad things about Alitalia e.g. strikes, lost luggage, rude service, etc. Is the situation with Alitalia still the same? Better? Worst? Or for my peace of mind, should I just take the Air France although flight itinerary is inconvenient (inbound is leaving Athens 6:50 AM). Thanks.

Hi C,

Flying cattle class is almost identical from carrier to carrier.

I would decide based on price and schedule.

((I))

In many years of flying I have had exactly one bad experience with Alitalia which involved a late flight and missed connection to Cairo. Since then, I have flown them with some regularity and found them to be as good as any other European or American airline. That said, there is always the strike issue but chances of that are not all that great, percentage-wise. Relax and take the best connection.

I agree with Ira. We flew Alitalia in Sept. 2004, right when their problems were peaking and they were threatening to go out of business. They also called a strike for the exact day we were leaving for Italy. Things got worked out as they usually do, and our trip went off without a hitch. There are no guarantees, however, but I think you should buy the tickets that work out best for you. We had no problems on Alitalia, and liked their new 777s, service was fine, luggage got there, etc.
Good luck.

I have to disagree with you on this one, Ira. I have personal experience with being delayed 6-8 hours for a flight out of Milan because the Italian air traffic controllers went on strike. A few of the other airlines had flights going out, but ALL Alitalia filghts were grounded for almost the whole day. It seems to me, from all the articles and accounts I have read, that the Italian transportation workers strike much more than others. I would go with anyone BUT Alitalia.

Of course, you might not be as lucky as I am. The Italian strike was my first trip to Europe; on my second, the French metro, bus, and taxi workers went on strike on my departure day from Paris. Maybe the universe is trying to send me a message? But is the message that I should go, or that I shouldn't try to leave once I get there? LOL

Phooey--that was supposed to be "as UNlucky as I am." (I'm a lousy typist.)

>...being delayed 6-8 hours for a flight out of Milan because the Italian air traffic controllers went on strike.<

I don't think that that can be blamed on the airline.

No one flies if the flight controllers aren't working.

The flights that did go out were probably scheduled to go before the start of the strike.

((I))

Ira is correct. If the Italian flight controllers go on strike it does not matter which airline you are flying with, your flight will be delayed. I flew into Amsterdam on KLM from SFO. The Italian flight controllers had just gone on strike. KLM City Hopper did not fly until the Italian fight controllers called off the strike late afternoon. No flight controllers, no flights.

But Alitalia is not the airline it once was I am sad to say. But I have heard negatives about Air France also..so I would chose the best schedules along with looking at the best airfares and what worked for me.

Go for the less expensive fare. Air France is as bad as Alitalia. Plus, if you are a FB member you will get 100% of the miles flown in Alitalia in any fare while in Air France, if you buy one of the cheaper fares you will only get 25% of the miles. AF and KLM are giving passengers to other Skyteam airlines... Silly but true!!!

While Ira is right in one aspect, you should be aware that the sciopero (italian for "strike") is a national sport here. While it is true that the ground crew could go on strike, you should be aware that the Alitalia pilots strike regularly, followed by the Alitalia stewards, followed by the Alitalia ground crew, and finally the Alitalia baggage handlers. They rotate regularly and sequentially. I firmly believe that you will be taking a BIG chance going Alitalia. There was an illegal 4-day strike here just a few weeks ago, that cost the airline HUGELY with respect to public confidence. It should be noted that flights into and out of Italy with other carriers were not affected. I would recommend going with Air France.

Ira, some flights WERE going out but only a few (I remember some KLM flights in particular for some reason). They must not have all gone on strike, or maybe I misheard which group it was. In any case, our late morning flight to JFK went out around 5 or 6 in the evening, which meant there was no connecting flight in NY to Dallas (was too late at night), and we had to stay in a hotel, which was paid for by the airline, but that was all the compensation we got because the delay was due to a strike rather than mechanical failure or something else under their control. They also lost my friend's suitcase, which caught up to us 3 days later in Venice. Just my opinion, based on my experience--Alitalia is NOT worth it, even if they are a little cheaper. A lot cheaper...well, then I'd consider it (but only with no checked luggage). :-)

If you are going out of NYC-have you checked the nonstop on Delta/JFK to Athens? They are also supposed to have a nonstop to Athens from Atlanta starting this spring.I always prefer nonstops when I can get them.

We got caught by an Alitalia strike a few years back, and lost a day of our vacation sitting in the Milan airport waiting to get to Venice. Other carriers were arriving and departing — only Alitalia was grounded. Then we spent the rest of the week worrying about whether we would get home, because it was one of those weeks where all the transportation workers were on rotating strikes.

After that I vowed never to fly Alitalia again, even though they have the only nonstop flights from Boston to Italy. As others have said, they are definitely more strike-prone than any other airline. It’s just part of the Italian culture. Personally I like Air France and generally try to fly them. The food and the movie selections on the individual TVs are the best I’ve found on transAtlantic flights from Boston.

The other reason we settled on Air France is that everything goes through Paris, and if we do get stuck someplace, I’d rather it was Paris than most other cities!