ITA Airways Begins Flying Airbus A320neos In Its Distinctive Blue Livery
The first blue Airbus A320neo departed from Rome on February 20th.
ITA Airways’ brand-new Airbus A320neo with a custom all-blue livery has taken flight for the first time. Flight AZ1781 departed from Rome Fiumicino Leonardo da Vinci International Airport and flew to Palermo airport, formerly known as the Punta Raisi Airport, arriving at Cinisi on February 20, 2023.
New all-blue neos for ITA Airways
The livery for the new Airbus A320neos, as with ITA’s other aircraft, is a nod to the jerseys of the Italian national football team. The A320neo includes a savoy blue cabin and empennage with white engines. The trailing edge of the rudder includes the red, white, and green of the Italian flag.
The new Airbus A320neo is named after Francesco Moser, the Italian cyclist from Trentino who was a cycling start in the 1970s and 1980s. Moser won the world road racing championship in 1977 and was a runner-up in 1976 and 1978.
Each of ITA Airways’ aircraft with the new livery are to be named after Italian sports stars. The first aircraft with the blue livery was an Airbus A320 dedicated to Paolo Rossi, the Italian World Cup-winning footballer. Two Airbus A319s have entered service as well. The first A319 was named after Pietro Mennea, a sprinter who won an Olympic gold medal in the 1980 Moscow Olympics. The second A319 was dedicated to Gino Bartali, a world renowned cyclist from the 1930s. The airline hopes that it will add more appeal to Italian customers as well as spreading Italian heritage around the world.
ITA Airways plans to use its social media networks to help pick the names for future aircraft with the new livery.
The Airbus A320neo brings an upgrade to ITA Airways
The Airbus A320neo will bring more efficiency to the ITA Airways fleet compared to existing aircraft. The A320neo offers 20% less fuel consumption and CO2 emissions per seat when compared to previous generation jets. The aircraft additionally features a new cabin design that includes more modern and comfortable seats.
ITA Airways will look to continue to modernize its fleet with more neo aircraft on the way. The airline’s fleet is going to feature almost 80% of new generation aircraft by 2026. By modernizing the fleet, ITA Airways will decrease CO2 emissions and improve efficiency.
This year, ITA expects to take delivery of 39 new aircraft, including its first Airbus A330-900. In the past year, ITA Airways has also debuted newly delivered Airbus A220s and A350s and now has a fleet size of nearly seventy aircraft.
ITA Airways looks to utilize the new Airbus A320neos for short to medium range flights
The Airbus A320neo will look to be used on the airline’s domestic and international network from the Fiumicino airport in Rome. This aircraft will cover all short and medium haul destinations starting in the 2023 summer season.
Some of the domestic routes include arriving at the airports of Brindisi, Bari, Catania, Naples, Palermo, and Venice. ITA Airways will use the A320neo on international routes, including to Paris, Madrid, and Brussels, as well as several other destinations in Europe.
