Tiny Air Italy pushes back on big US carriers that say it competes unfairly

Air Italy, 49% owned by Qatar Airways, continues to push back against accusations by the 3 major US carriers that it is “cheating” by adding new flights from its Milan hub to several US cities. “I would love to know how we are cheating,” Rossen Dimitrov, Air Italy’s COO, said. “We are a fully European airline, and we meet all the regulations and requirements of the EU. We have a majority shareholder which is European.” The US carriers have questioned Qatar’s motivations, asking the State Department to look into whether Qatar’s investment is appropriate. “With respect to Meridiana Airlines [Air Italy], it is clear that that airline could not be driving the growth and funding the losses it is clearly having if there wasn’t a strong govt entity behind the scenes funding that,” Delta CE Ed Bastian said this month. <br/>