Air Italy lands at the OFS with stops and low fares for Milan

The San Francisco International Airport is again connected to Italy with nonstop flights after the arrival of the new Air Italy arriving Wednesday afternoon from Milan Malpensa Airport ( MXP).

The flights operate four times a week on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays on the carrier's large capacity aircraft fleet, Airbus A330-200.

The non-stop flight of 5,947 miles takes off from the OFS at 19:10 and arrives at the hub of the airline in Milan at 16:05. The next day. On return, the flight leaves Milan at 13:35. and arrive FSO at 17:10 Flight times are about 12 hours each way.

For a one week itinerary in mid-June, we found Air Italy fares of around $ 1,200 return per person in the carrier's basic fare clbad. This is the fare without checked baggage, seat selection in advance and many fees if you wish to change flight. The route climbs to about $ 1,450.00 with all these extra benefits included. It is a very good deal for a summer flight in Italy! Late August rates drop to about $ 900 round trip. And in October, they cost as little as $ 619 round trip.

In business clbad, fares range from $ 4,000 to $ 5,000 return – about half of what you would pay with British Airways or Lufthansa for a business clbad one-way flight from the other side of the airport. 39; pond.

For the last time, SFO saw regular non-stop flights to Italy in 2001, when Alitalia was connecting San Francisco and Milan with a Boeing 767-300. In 2015, the President of Alitalia, Luca di Montezemolo, has stated his intention to relaunch the service to the SFO, but so far, we have not yet seen the return of the Italian flag carrier in trouble.

Norwegian Air's air service between Oakland and Rome's Fiumicino Airport is the only other non-stop flight from the Bay Area to Italy.

Air Italy is the last airline in Europe after undergoing a major overhaul in 2017-2018. The carrier was formerly called Meridiana, but the new owners gave it a new name, a paint job and ambitious plans to compete with Alitalia.

Its intensive use of the brown color should sound familiar – it's a shade similar to that of Qatar Airways jets. The uniforms worn by the flight crew of Air Italy are very similar to those worn by Qatar. (See the slideshow at the top of this article for a look in the plane)

The Gulf carrier, known for its deep pockets, now holds 49% of Air Italy's capital – and the company does not hesitate to exert its influence or wealth. For example, the maiden flight will take place at Tony Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco, on Nob Hill.

Discover the spaghetti-shaped noodle approach that the maiden flight of Air Italy has crossed at the OFS's approach yesterday – a brilliantly clear day for a slow, slow pbadage overhead Golden Gate Bridge and the city. (Read more about these special flights "Bay Tour" approach here.)

The crazy inaugural approach of Air Italy's spaghetti noodles to the OFS included low and slow flights through the Golden Gate Bridge and the city.

The inaugural approach crazy Air Italy spaghetti noodles for …

Each Air Italy A330 has 24 business clbad seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. These seats tilt in a 180-degree sleeping surface, but unlike most other carriers, they are tilted slightly. Many first-generation business clbad berths were sloped to maximize space, but most carriers phased out these products, with pbadengers often complaining and slipping on the slight slope while sleeping.

At the back, there are 236 economic seats arranged 2-4-2 side by side, each with a depth of 31 inches. Air Italy does not offer premium economy cabs or extra-legrooms, unlike many other airlines operating transatlantic flights. All seats are equipped with file monitors with TV and free movies and a universal power outlet. Check out the map of seats of Air Italy A330 on SeatGuru.

Satellite Wi-Fi is available for purchase with packages starting at 3 euros (around 3.50 USD) for 20 MB of data. A high-end Internet package of 21 euros (about 23.66 USD) gives you 180 MB. However, large Internet browsers may burn these amounts quickly. More here.

Air Italy is not part of an alliance of airlines, but you can use and earn Avios points through its Meridiana Club loyalty program. It also shares codes with member airlines of OneWorld, British Airways, Iberia and (of course) Qatar Airways.

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San Francisco is the latest expansion project of Air Italy. Last week, it launched four weekly flights to Los Angeles and, next month, Air Italy will start serving Toronto. In the United States, Air Italy also serves the John F. Kennedy Airport in New York and Miami. The IATA code of Air Italy is: IG.

From its hub in Milan, Air Italy offers several domestic routes serving Rome, Naples, Palermo, Catania, Lamezia Terme and soon Cagliari, capital of the picturesque Italian island of Sardinia. The carrier also serves several cities in the Middle East and Africa, including Accra, Cairo, Dakar and Lagos.

The carrier plans to add at least 20 more throws in the coming years, but for now, it operates a relatively small fleet, with only five Airbus A330s, five Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft and three Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. The entire fleet of MAX was immobilized because of the well-known issues surrounding this aircraft.

Would you fly to Air Italy? What is your favorite way to go to Italy? Please leave your thoughts in the comments!

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Chris McGinnis is the founder of TravelSkills.com. The author is solely responsible for the content above, which is used here with permission. You can contact Chris at [email protected] or on Twitter @cjmcginnis.