Alitalia unveils new customer service enhancements

Alitalia unveiled (13-Oct-2015) a series of customer service enhancements that will improve the travel experience for air passengers. The airline also confirmed its three-year business plan was on track for profitability by 2017. Airline chairman Luca Cordero di Montezemolo said, "Our performance is in line with the business plan. And, for the first time since 2009, the load factor for the quarter exceeded 80% and we are on track to meet our objective of reaching profitability by 2017". The new initiatives include:

Fleet and destinations

• Rome Fiumicino-Santiago service from May-2016, and Rome Flumicino-Mexico City service from Jun-2016. With the two new services, Alitalia will operate five Latin American routes and a total of 10 in the Americas;
• Refurbishment of interiors of medium-haul and long-haul aircraft, retrofitting them with leather seats. The programme will start in Nov-2015 and will be completed in spring 2016. Long-haul aircraft retrofitting for business class seats will be completed by autumn 2016;
• Internet and email connectivity services currently on the long-haul fleet, will be extended to the entire Alitalia fleet, including medium-range aircraft;
• Evaluation of options to expand its long-haul fleet, which will see 2016's long-haul capacity increase by more than 20% compared to 2015.

Passengers looked after as guests

• Introduction of a new complimentary executive car chauffeur service for business class customers travelling to Abu Dhabi from Rome, Milan and Venice, as well as to New York JFK from Rome and Milan, will be introduced;
• Refurbished and brand new airport lounges at Rome, Milan Linate, Milan Malpensa, Naples, Catania and New York JFK will be completed in the next 12 months;
• Send 1820 employees to the Etihad Airways' Training Academy. In the next few days the new Alitalia Excellence Training Centre will be inaugurated.

Communications

• A new alitalia.com website will be introduced in Nov-2015;
• Alitalia will launch advertising campaigns both in Italy and in all major countries in which it operates, to promote its services and Italy as a destination for tourists;

Focus Fiumicino

• Reconfiguration and expansion of the fleet of shuttle buses, stairs and baggage belts for aircraft;
• New ground staff uniforms;
• New procedures to accelerate the boarding of passengers, with an increase in the number of staff at the departure gates. [more - original PR]