Berlin’s giant Messe complex opened its doors this morning to the first day of ITB Berlin 2026, and Italy’s flag-carrier seized the spotlight. At a stand christened “Italian Piazza”—complete with olive tree and cobble-stone flooring—ITA Airways unveiled the long-haul and intra-European growth that will shape its summer schedule and, by extension, international mobility to and from Italy. The airline confirmed that on 1 May it will inaugurate thrice-weekly Rome–Houston flights—the first ever nonstop connection between the two cities—with frequency rising to five per week in June. The service cements Rome-Fiumicino’s role as a trans-Atlantic hub and gives companies with Texan energy, engineering and fashion interests a one-stop alternative to congested East-Coast gateways. At the same time ITA Airways will return to London-Heathrow with two daily rotations, restoring a key business-travel artery that Alitalia abandoned in the run-up to its 2021 collapse. Connectivity inside Europe is also expanding. Up to 47 weekly frequencies will link Rome and Milan-Linate with Frankfurt, Munich and Hamburg, while new seasonal services to Málaga, Valencia and Marseille supplement the carrier’s Spanish and French networks.
![ITA Airways showcases new long-haul and European links at ITB Berlin 2026]()
Before boarding any of these new flights, passengers should make sure their travel documents are in order. VisaHQ (https://www.visahq.com/italy/) offers both corporate mobility teams and individual travelers a fast, fully digital way to secure Italian visas—as well as permits for onward destinations—complete with real-time status tracking and dedicated customer support, ensuring connections like the forthcoming Rome–Houston service stay hassle-free.
Capacity to Tunis will climb by seven weekly flights, and extra summer peak flights to Sardinia will reinforce domestic holiday traffic. Corporate travel managers welcomed the news, noting that ITA’s membership in the Lufthansa Group joint procurement platform already yields through-fares and lounge reciprocity. Fleet modernisation underpins the growth: 106 all-Airbus aircraft now fly the ITA colours—72 % of them new-generation neos—bringing the average age down to 6.3 years and cutting per-seat CO₂ by double-digits. The carrier also highlighted back-office synergies with Lufthansa, including unified distribution technology and an imminent adoption of Starlink in-flight Wi-Fi across wide-bodies. For global-mobility teams the message is clear: Italy’s flagship airline is no longer a restructuring story but an expanding network player. The new routes give assignees more one-stop options, reduce reliance on competitor hubs, and, thanks to neos and SAF-blending trials, help firms inch toward Scope 3 emission targets. Travellers should, however, watch for ticket-class realignments as ITA harmonises with Lufthansa’s fare ladder.
Before boarding any of these new flights, passengers should make sure their travel documents are in order. VisaHQ (https://www.visahq.com/italy/) offers both corporate mobility teams and individual travelers a fast, fully digital way to secure Italian visas—as well as permits for onward destinations—complete with real-time status tracking and dedicated customer support, ensuring connections like the forthcoming Rome–Houston service stay hassle-free.
Capacity to Tunis will climb by seven weekly flights, and extra summer peak flights to Sardinia will reinforce domestic holiday traffic. Corporate travel managers welcomed the news, noting that ITA’s membership in the Lufthansa Group joint procurement platform already yields through-fares and lounge reciprocity. Fleet modernisation underpins the growth: 106 all-Airbus aircraft now fly the ITA colours—72 % of them new-generation neos—bringing the average age down to 6.3 years and cutting per-seat CO₂ by double-digits. The carrier also highlighted back-office synergies with Lufthansa, including unified distribution technology and an imminent adoption of Starlink in-flight Wi-Fi across wide-bodies. For global-mobility teams the message is clear: Italy’s flagship airline is no longer a restructuring story but an expanding network player. The new routes give assignees more one-stop options, reduce reliance on competitor hubs, and, thanks to neos and SAF-blending trials, help firms inch toward Scope 3 emission targets. Travellers should, however, watch for ticket-class realignments as ITA harmonises with Lufthansa’s fare ladder.
