ITA Airways plans Caracas launch and studies further Americas routes

ITA Airways will keep growing its long-haul network as it seeks market share from its Rome Fiumicino base, its chief executive said.

The Italian carrier plans three-weekly flights from Rome to Caracas, Venezuela, starting 30 March 2027. Alitalia, the airline ITA replaced, previously flew the route. The launch follows the start of services to Houston George Bush airport in May and comes before a seasonal Santo Domingo service in the Dominican Republic at the end of November, the carrier's first to Central America.

Speaking at the World Aviation Festival in Lisbon, chief executive Joerg Eberhart tied the expansion to the airline's position within the Lufthansa Group, which took a minority stake at the start of last year. ITA's market share at Fiumicino is much smaller than that of the other Lufthansa hubs, he said, so the carrier has to grow faster than the market there. That means adding two long-range aircraft to the fleet each year.

North and South America will be the focus. Eberhart called Venezuela interesting but said other South American destinations are under consideration, including Santiago in Chile and Lima in Peru, alongside existing operations in Argentina and Brazil. Studies are under way, he said, and no decision is needed yet.

ITA also raised frequencies on its Bangkok and Delhi services this year. Eberhart said Asia flying remains limited because Russian airspace is still closed, forcing longer routings that carry competitive disadvantages. The airline is looking at additional eastern routes to India, he added, and Japan remains in focus.