Italy state railway considers Alitalia rescue plan delay

Italy's state railway Feorrovie dello Stato (FS) said Monday its board had met and looked at a possible delay to a deadline to submit a rescue plan for ailing carrier Alitalia. The airline has been under special administration since 2017 when workers rejected the latest in a long line of rescue plans. Rome is desperate to orchestrate a rescue to avoid mass layoffs. FS, which has been spearheading the Alitalia rescue efforts, has until Tuesday to find investors ready to inject fresh funds and revamp the airline. The railway group has been hoping to create a transport consortium to offer consumers a one-stop shop for travel inside and outside Italy. Both FS and Delta Air are ready to contribute to a new rescue bid worth around E1b, but there is still a shortfall of around E400m. Asked whether FS had already presented a request for a postponement to Tuesday's deadline, the company declined any further comment. Alitalia also declined to comment, while Italy's government had no immediate comment. FS had already asked for a two-month extension to an initial end-March deadline earlier this year but was only granted a one-month postponement after special commissioners running the carrier said it was in danger of falling into liquidation if no rescue package was forthcoming. One government source familiar with the matter said FS wanted two more weeks to complete its offer but said the commissioners were against the idea.<br/>