All Nippon Airways (ANA) and ITA Airways have announced, this Friday (12), the signing of a codeshare agreement between the two. The new partnership, effective from January 24, will allow the sale of ANA-operated flights with ITA’s code and vice-versa, strengthening both airlines’ connectivity to and from its hubs.
According to a press release, ANA’s «NH» code will be applied in ITA flights from the latter’s hub in Rome/Fiumicino to Bologna, Florence, Naples, Turin and Venice. In Japan, ITA’s «AZ» code is to be applied to flights connecting Tokyo/Haneda to Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Itami, Kansai, Okinawa and Sapporo.
ITA Airways’ flight connecting Rome/Fiumicino to Tokyo/Haneda will also receive ANA’s code. The two cities are currently only connected by Italy’s flag carrier, with five weekly frequencies operated by the airline’s Airbus A350-900.
«This agreement will contribute to further consolidate the economic and commercial relations between Italy and Japan», the press release reads, «and will offer Italian tourists the opportunity to broadly discover the wonders of Japan and to Japanese citizens the opportunity to easily travel to Italy, ensuring the highest standards of safety.»
Nonstop travel between Japan and Italy is still significantly below pre-pandemic levels. In 2019, Alitalia connected Tokyo (at the time through Narita Airport) from both Rome/Fiumicino and Milan/Malpensa. According to Cirium’s Diio Mi application, in 2023 capacity in terms of seats between the two countries was still 56% below, when compared to 2019.
On December 2023, Italian tourism news website L’Agenzia di Viaggi reported that All Nippon Airways was transferring its Italian office from Rome to Milano. The move took place «waiting for the arrival — not yet announced — of the nonstop Milan-Tokyo flight».
ANA had already announced a nonstop service between the two cities in 2019. The flight, to be started from Summer 2020, would have been operated by the airline’s Boeing 787-9, but plans were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
