My travel agent just came back with a quote of 1100 cdn return to Italy from Toronto, but it is with Air Italia the reviews i have seen would send me running in the other direction. Am I being unfair?

I have flown several times with Alitalia. They always brought me back to the ground.

However:

- Expect flying with airplanes which could be on display in historical aircraft museums. (They still fly the Super 80!!!)

- When you look into the cockpit, expect all mechanical equipment, well-worn.

- Do not expect that your seat works properly (or anything else).

Have you ever ridden a historic railroad somewhere or driven a vintage car? It is a little bit like this experience.

Been to Tokyo, was the same plane returning three weeks after I left. I noticed, beause the left audio channel wasn't working in my seat, since nobody fixed it during that time. Landed in Milan on time, the flight to Munich was delayed by two hours. I am still alive, so it's o.k.

I don't think I'd be booking on Alitalia right now. The airline is on the brink of collapse after failing to find a buy-out suitor. Even Aeroflot turned them down because of Alitalia's old, gas-guzzling fleet. AirFrance/KLM are in exclusive negotiation at the moment and have something like 10 days to decide.

OMG, is all i would say

I am not in a posotion to know what sources of news about the anticipated acquisition of Alitalia are true.

But I think that the assertion by Jean runs contrary to some other sources, specifically...

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showt...462&page=3

It sure sounds like Air France KLM group will acquire Alitalia, though the much smaller company Air One is allegedly still in the game?

I am planning to fly Alitalia from Palermo to London in June, and my return home _depends on the airline. I suppose I will come up with a plan B if there are any _serious_ signs that their operations might falter.

Best wishes,

Rex

Alitalia stinks. The staff are indifferent at best. The equipment is not well-kept. That being said, I am not worried about them going bankrupt or crashing. I would fly them for a $200 roundtrip savings in coach from North America. Less than that and they are not worth it.

We are well traveled and Alitalia is the worst experience we ever had.

Did they get us there in one piece? Yes.

Other than that, I have strong feelings about it!!

Good Luck!

YMMV. I will certainly agree that that airlines are old, and the seats look a bit shabby, but there is still some courtesy in Alitalia. Admittedly we flew Business Class from Chicago to Milan (easiest Business Class to get with Frequent Flier miles as a Continental partner), but we were a bit concerned when, just before our flight, we checked to make sure our luggage was aboard the Alitalia flight and found they had no record of one of our pieces. The reason we were doing this was that the year before, a transit between United and Air France had resulted in missing luggage, and despite a two hour layover in Chicago, my wife insisted we check on the luggage. The flight attendants knew that our luggage didn't seem to be aboard, and they were very understanding. When we landed in Milan we had overnight packs from Alitalia awaiting our arrival, even though the supposedly missing luggage was actually on the plane.

My news sources are the L.A. Times (today), CNN Monday (online last month) and Forbes magazine (some time last fall). I was wrong about one thing: AirFrance and KLM have 8 weeks to decide whether to make a binding offer. I think the clock started last month at the time I saw the CNN story.

According to the L.A. Times article, Alitalia is losing $1.6 million a day. An executive of Ryanair said he wouldn't take Alitalia if it were handed to him on a silver platter. Alitalia's CEO said he hoped the AirFrance/KLM deal is struck quickly because the airline "is on its last legs. There is no more time for other attempts." The airline's debt is now $1.7 billion.

A few other issues mentioned in the L.A. Times article:

Some government officials had favored talks with AP Holding, the parent of Italy's largest private carrier Air One, as a way of maintaining some level of Italian ownership. Because AirFrance/KLM would probably return Alitalia's hub to Fiumicino and away from Malpensa, north-south tensions are high. Job cuts are anticipated which could trigger strikes.

Should read "CNN Money."

Jean: My apologies. All of your information is accurate and consistent with my understanding. I didn't mean to suggest that Alitalia wasn't going to go bankrupt, I really meant that I don't think they are in grave danger of liquidation.

If Alitalia was a significant savings, I would just buy a basic travel insurance policy to cover that risk. If they aren't a significant savings... then fly anybody else.

We flew Alitalia between Geneva, Milan and Catania:
- no problem during the 4 flights, all flights on time,
- no delayed nor lost luggage,
- friendly service.
Previously, we have made other flights with Alitalia and have never experienced any difficulties.

Have a look at
http://www.aea.be/research/performance/index.html
Alitalia is not that good for luggage handling, nor for punctuality, but so are all mayor airlines (Airfrance, Lufthansa, KLM,...)
But Alitalia bashing has always been a favourite occupation of some Fodorites...

The value of Aeroplan points if you fly Air Canada are not to be ignored. I suspect that points from AC would be of more use to you than whatever Alitalia offers.

"But Alitalia bashing has always been a favourite occupation of some Fodorites..."

But, it isn't mindless bashing. As you noted, they are not overly reliable. And, when you combine this with some pretty tatty planes and the usually indifferent staff, the whole experience just doesn't inspire confidence.

I just don't think it inappropriate to say that Alitalia is a pretty bad airline. Now, whether the competition is not appreciably better is another another story, but this doesn't change the fact that Alitalia is not very good.

I've recently flown a couple of flights to/from Rome on Alitalia and found them fine (using a typical US domestic carrier as a comparison). The equipment was a Super 80 but the interior was perfectly acceptable, everything worked and it was clean. A number of US airlines still fly Super 80s (American and Alaska until at least recently) so they are not particularly unusual. The flights left the gates on time (wheels up at Rome was delayed due to fog at the airport but that's not Alitalia's fault) and the staff were accommodating (and pleasant) within the minimal service ethos common at most airlines today. If my options are discount airlines (such as Ryan Air) and Alitalia I will choose Alitalia, the discount airlines have driven mainline airline prices down to close to the discounter's fare.

In December 2007 and January 2008, I flew Alitalia Boston to Milan to Budapest.

My only complaint is the small amount of leg room in coach.

I have found all Alitalia employees to be pleasant and helpful. The food is acceptable.

However, note that I did not check any bags. Lost luggage evidently is a major problem with the airlines.

In February, I will be flying the same route again.

"I just don't think it inappropriate to say that Alitalia is a pretty bad airline. Now, whether the competition is not appreciably better is another story, but this doesn't change the fact that Alitalia is not very good."

It is not *another* story, it is the same story; the quality an airline offers. It is maybe not mindless, but very SELECTIVE bashing. Ever read a message saying "Air France or KLM lost my luggage?"

Remarks as "Alitalia stinks. The staff is indifferent at best. The equipment is not well kept." are deplorable overgeneralizing remarks. You can have had a bad experience, but this doesn't allow to generalize in this way.

This Alitalia ranting is of the same quality, and as annoying, as the kind of questions "Do all europeans dislike americans?"
;-)

The OP asked about AIR ITALIA , not Alitalia.

<i>&quot;Ever read a message saying &quot;Air France or KLM lost my luggage?&quot;&quot;</i>

Yes, I have read these sorts of threads, both here and elsewhere. CDG, in particular is a frequent source of frustration. As for KLM... I am on record as stating that I do not consider them a top-tier airline.

There is a vigorous thread in the airlines forum, right now, where many are railing against AA. As usual, this has featured the usual canard about how &quot;European airlines are better than any American Airline.&quot;

<i>&quot;Remarks as &quot;Alitalia stinks. The staff is indifferent at best. The equipment is not well kept.&quot; are deplorable overgeneralizing remarks. You can have had a bad experience, but this doesn't allow to generalize in this way.&quot;</i>

Actually, I don't base this upon one bad experience, but several legs over the past year with them. The planes have been universally shabby and one gets the feeling the whole thing is held together with duct tape. The staff is relatively inattentive, and I am not the first to make this comment. They aren't mean or anything, they just sort of disappear during longer flights.

And &quot;deplorable generalizations&quot;? How exactly do you rate airlines and try to convey your impressions? This isn't kindergarten and we don't need to worry about anybody's feelings - these are businesses like any other. By definition, you can't give your impression of an airline without generalizing.

Indeed, I'm not even really basing this upon any particularly bad incident, just what I consider an honest assessment of the quality levels at the various airlines I have flown in the past year or so. When all is said and done, Alitalia finishes near the bottom of a list that includes (in order of coach quality): Northwest, BA, Delta, SAS, Continental, American, &lt;gap&gt;, KLM, Alitalia, &lt;gap&gt;, Jetstar Asia, Sterling. Feel free to offer your own list.