Etihad Airways has expressed early interest in a total or partial takeover of Alitalia after the airline submitted Friday a non-binding offer for the stake, a source has confirmed. Italian media reported that Etihad was one of 10 companies submitting offers for Alitalia. A source close to the matter confirmed that Etihad has sent its offer, but stressed that that was not legally-binding, meaning that Etihad might not acquire any additional stakes after a deal is finalised. Other carriers that submitted offers include Ryanair, according to Italian media. The deadline for loss-making Alitalia to receive non-binding offers was Friday. The source from Etihad said that Alitalia’s administration is expected to reach out to bidders to discuss the offers further, but did not disclose when that may happen. <br/>