Arriverderci, Aeroitalia!

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We’ve heard about several airlines that have closed up shop recently. Silver Airways. PLAY. Wizz Air Abu Dhabi. And, of course, Spirit Airlines is currently on life support.

There’s another airline that we’re going to have to say goodbye to, although it’s not for the same reason as the ones we mentioned above.

Lufthansa-controlled Aeroitalia, the courts have determined, will have to undergo a name, logo and color change, due to a copyright infringement case brought by Italian flag carrier ITA.

What happened?

Alitalia, as you may recall, officially ended in October, 2021. However, it had already been deemed insolvent back in 2017. During the airline’s bankruptcy procedures, ITA Airways paid roughly 90 million euros to maintain ownership of the Alitalia brand, including its logo, domain name, IATA flight code, etc.

Meanwhile, AeroItalia was a private carrier that took off in spring of 2022. By October 2023, ITA Airways sent a cease-and-desist order to Aeroitalia, claiming trademark infringement. From Airways:

The legal action was initiated by Società Italiana Brevetti (SIB), an intellectual property firm acting on behalf of ITA Airways, which claimed that Aeroitalia’s branding elements, particularly its rudder design and overall visual identity, were too similar to those of the defunct Alitalia airline.

The two have been battling it out in the courts ever since.

The Court’s Ruling

However last week the judge ordered Aeroitalia to stop using their current name, logo, and color scheme, deeming it too similar to the old Alitalia branding.

Here are the two logos:

What do you think?

Plan B

Anyway, Gaetano Intrieri, CEO of “no longer Aeroitalia,” suggested he already has a Plan B.

He said in an interview with Italian newspaper La Repubblica that his airline is going to revive the Air Italy brand.

“I registered the Air Italy trademark and chose this new name,” he told the newspaper.

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