The Italian government has signed a decree in which it is planning to establish "Newco" as a successor for Alitalia. According to the country's minister of transport the official name of the company is ITA, but will for now be referred to as Newco.

The new airline will "represent a clear break" with the past, stoking discussions that ditching the Alitalia-brand is part of that clear break. Italy thinks a new flag-carrier will support Italy getting back on track after the Corona-crisis and plans for it to have a leading role in the European and international market.

Earlier this year the government nationalized Alitalia after the airline was, once again, on the brink of collapse. It has been battling with financial issues for years and the government now wants to take this drastic action to resolve this.

Newco's management team will now start discussions with the management team of Alitalia and unions regarding the staffing needs of the new airline. At this moment no decision has been made about the number of aircraft and types. However, a few months ago, Italian newspapers reported that the new airline was planning to focus its fleet around the A220, A320neo-family and B787. This because for these three types of aircraft Italian companies produce a significant number of components, which would benefit the Italian economy.