Air France has concluded its first major marketing agreement with an Italian airline by signing an extensive codeshare agreement with Bergamo-based regional Gandalf Airlines.
The tie-up, which takes effect on 25 March, followed six months of complex negotiations and covers routes linking Italy with France, Germany and Spain.
The airline operates six Fairchild Dornier 328JETs, with a further three on order, and four 328 turboprops from its Bergamo hub near Milan. Most of the airline's 500 weekly flights will be included in the agreement.
The Gandalf link provides Air France with an Italian ally, after it failed to form a major alliance with Italian flag carrier Alitalia. The French airline can now extend its network with several Italian domestic flights. The and could pave the way for Air France to take a minority shareholding in Gandalf.
Air France's European rivals already have Italian partners, and the French carrier had been considered a potential buyer for Meridiana before the Sardinian airline's decision last year to take itself off the market.
Gandalf expects that the agreement will boost its traffic by 50% to 300,000 passengers this year, underwriting a substantial increase in turnover. The airline is expected to record a turnover of around L60 billion ($29 million) for last year with a loss of around L20 billion. This is expected to be reduced to a small loss or even a break-even this year.
Source: Flight International
