The nastiest feud in the airline industry is back

Representatives for
The US carriers believe this behavior is in violation of agreements between the US and the Qatari government.
US carriers have long accused Qatar Airways, Emirates, and Etihad of using more than $50 billion in government subsidies to tilt the field of competition in their favor.
The long-running feud between the carriers was thought to have been settled in May.

On Wednesday, Air Italy announced plans to launch flights to Los Angeles and San Francisco from its main hub in Milan.

"With the launch of these two new exciting gateways in California, our network will be expanding significantly, providing even more fantastic options for our equally rapidly expanding customer base," Rossen Dimitov, the airline's COO, said in a statement.

However, reaction to the news from American, Delta, United, and nearly a dozen members of the US Senate was swift and negative.

Air Italy, itself, isn't the reason for the rancor. After all, it's a small airline with a modest 15-aircraft fleet. It's the presence of Air Italy's second-largest shareholder, Qatar Airways, that has ruffled so many feathers.

With this development, the nastiest feud in the airline industry is back on.

The feud is back

Here's a quick recap of the dispute.

For years, American, Delta, and United Airlines have complained that the Persian Gulf-based Emirates, Etihad, and Qatar Airways tilted the playfield in their favor by using more than $50 billion in government subsidies to fuel their international expansion.

The subsidies, the US carriers contend, are in direct violation of the "fair competition" stipulated by the Open Skies agreements that govern air travel between the US and the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

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Qatar Airways acquired 49% of Italian airline Meridiana in October 2017 and was rebranded as Air Italy in February. The newly christened Air Italy relaunched service using a fleet of new Boeing and Airbus jets acquired with assistance from Qatar Airways.

For example, the airline's new Boeing 737 MAX jets were leased by Qatar Airways for use by Air Italy. While the Airbus A330s used for its US routes all previously served in the Qatar Airways fleet.

Alisarda is an air services, airport management, and tourism company based in Olbia, Italy on the island of Sardinia.

The opposition to Air Italy's US expansion believes the airline's growth is being bankrolled by Qatar Airways and is being used to bypass the deal signed by the US and Qatari government earlier this year. According to the Associated Press, the Qatari government indicated that it was not aware of any plans on the part of its national airline to launch new fifth freedom flights. The fifth freedom of the sky is the right to fly between two foreign countries on a flight that either begins or ends in one's own country.

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"With the announcement of new routes from Air Italy to the US, fueled by money from Qatar Airways, the government of Qatar has demonstrated a stunning lack of respect for President Trump and Secretary of State Pompeo," Scott Reed, campaign manager for the Partnership for Open & Fair Skies which speaks on behalf of American, Delta, and United, said in a statement.

Air Italy already operates flights to New York and Miami with its Los Angeles and San Francisco routes expected to launch in April.

The nastiest feud in the airline industry is back

The feud is back

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