ITA Airways, the ‘new’ Alitalia, is running a fare sale between New York and London via Rome. Business class tickets are available as low as $1585 roundtrip when purchasing for travel in August and beyond. That’s roughly half the price you’d expect to pay for a non-stop, and more than $1,000 less per passenger compared to connecting itineraries on Aer Lingus and Austrian.

This is not a mistake fare. It’s an advance purchase ‘midweek excursion fare’ which requires a 7 night minimum stay. In other words, it’s a restrictive fare sale.

Key details of fare basis IN7LU7DT:

• Day of week travel restrictions:
  

  FOR TRAVEL ON/AFTER 10APR 23
  PERMITTED MON/TUE/WED/SUN OR MON/TUE/WED/SUN OR MON/
  TUE/WED/SUN ON EACH TRANSATLANTIC SECTOR.
  FOR TRAVEL ON/AFTER 11APR 23
  PERMITTED TUE/WED/THU/FRI OR TUE/WED/THU/FRI OR TUE/
  WED/THU/FRI OR TUE/WED/THU/FRI ON EACH TRANSATLANTIC
  SECTOR.

• 120 day advance purchase required
• No stopovers permitted
• Non-refundable, but no change fees (you’d pay difference in fare)
• No extra charge for infant travel

ITA Airways, ‘the new Alitalia’, is only kind of sort of part of SkyTeam. You can’t earn Delta miles with these flights – only Delta codeshares for travel on ITA. You can, however, credit business class I fares on ITA to Virgin, earning 200% of miles flown. ITA has its own program of course, but only revenue-based redemptions on their own metal. And the airline may be sold to Lufthansa – hopefully Star earning and redemptions happens.

(HT: Loyalty Lobby)

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