Less than 3 years after it was pulled back from the brink of bankruptcy by Etihad Airways, Alitalia is once again in financial straits. An indication of the seriousness of the situation came after a board meeting immediately before Christmas. Alitalia CE Cramer Ball said that partners, suppliers and the trade unions had to accept the “radical changes” that would be needed to persuade Alitalia’s shareholders to provide a new tranche of funding. He added that considerable improvements had been made over the past 2 years but that Alitalia now operated in a “brutally unforgiving” market. Low-cost carriers are continuing to eat into its domestic and short-haul markets. Ryanair now actually has more capacity in the Italian market than Alitalia. <br/>