The Italian populist government's relaunch of Alitalia includes plans to take a 15% share and the inclusion of the state railway company as a strategic partner, says Economic Development Minister Luigi Di Maio. The long-awaited details were revealed ahead of meeting with Alitalia union leaders and as the government awaits an Oct. 31 deadline for binding offers from other companies, a process that had been launched by the previous government. It remained unclear how the government's new shareholder structure would affect potential bidders' view of Alitalia. But officials in Premier Giuseppe Conte's office said the government wanted to re-establish Alitalia as Italy's flagship carrier, giving it preferential rights, the news agency ANSA reported. Di Maio, whose 5-Star Movement made Alitalia's future a campaign theme, insisted in an interview published Friday that plans for the government to take a stake would not raise objections from EU regulators. "We are considering a threshold of government participation that is not so far off from other European experiences," Di Maio told the paper, citing the French government's holding in Air France. Di Maio said that a partnership with state-owned national railway, Ferrovie dello Stato, would allow synergies, like the possibility of integrating a train ticket with airfare for tourists.<br/>
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Delta will introduce the first Airbus A220 in North America at New York LaGuardia airport, making good on promises that the aircraft would initially fly from the Big Apple. The carrier says it will introduce the A220-100 on flights from LaGuardia to Boston and Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) on 31 January 2019. The aircraft will be configured with 109 seats, comprising 12 in first class, 15 in extra-legroom economy and 82 in economy. Delta will expand its A220 network to include the route from Detroit to DFW in March; LaGuardia to Houston Intercontinental in April; Salt Lake City to DFW in May; Minneapolis/St Paul to DFW in June; Detroit, Minneapolis/St Paul and Salt Lake City to Houston in July; and New York JFK to DFW in August. Executives at Delta have previously said that the carrier would use the aircraft on longer business routes operated with regional aircraft, like from the coasts to Texas. <br/>