Friday, 19th September 2008 - 12:33CET

Aviation body could ground Alitalia in 10 days

Italy's civil aviation authority ENAC will ground Alitalia <AZPIa.MI> flights in seven to 10 days from Monday if the special administrator does not present a new rescue plan to them that day, a source at ENAC said.

"From Monday if there is no news proceedures will be started and within a week, 10 days at most, if there is no positive outcome Alitalia flights will be stopped," said the source.

The airline's special administrator, Augusto Fantozzi, is due to meet the aviation body on Monday after Italian consortium CAI withdrew its offer to buy part of the airline yesterday, in the face of union opposition to job losses.

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Article © Allied Newspapers Ltd., printed on Sunday, November 22, 2009. This article is for personal use only, and should not be distributed.

Comments

Manuel Mifsud (on 19/9/08)

I heard some comments on Rai TV by Alitalia employees and thought I was dreaming. Although I fully sympatize with their situation, I cannot understand how they seem to ignore the stark reality that their Airline will soon be declared bankrupt.

What do they have in mind if this happens? They will all lose their job and become redundant. Are they going to revolt or cause street disturbances? I wonder. Even if they do, what are they going to gain?

Thank God we are living in Malta where, despite having a few hot heads, an agreement was reached between the government and the GWU regarding the future of our dockyards.

Charles Camilleri (on 19/9/08)

It is about time that this farce will come to an end. The Alitalia saga is a clear example how difficult it is for a Govt owned company to adjust to new circumstances as other private companies have done. Political interference and the unions have helped to bring Alitalia to its knees.