Alitalia Bankruptcy and Choice Air

[Ranasa]

My husband and I booked 2 business class seats from Boston to Rome for the July 31st sailing on the Reflection.

Alitalia initiated bankruptcy proceedings today.

 

Setting aside the debate about whether the government will bail them out (to the extent possible under EU guidelines) and/or whether they will be acquired, has anyone contacted Choice Air concerning this situation already? I think it's too soon for us to panic and we did book Celebrity trip insurance which covers the whole booking, but I am curious as to whether anyone has reached out and talked to a rep on what Choice Air will do to honor the tickets. Final payment was due yesterday for this cruise.

 

Before I get into the Choice Air queue, I thought I would pose the question to the community...thanks in advance!

[Kamloops50]

Talk to Choice Air. No matter what say. Choice Air has the final say.

[Fouremco]

Based on the articles I've read, Alitalia will continue to operate for the time being. Will your flights this summer, it appears that you might be alright. I'd give it a few days to see how this is going to shake out.

[BEAV]

Although this is no guarantee, I remember when United filed for bankruptcy several years ago it did not impact their operations.

[johhnnyt]

I've rarely seen a bankruptcy disrupt a carriers operations, either way since you bought the ticket via Choice Air, they'll arrange alternate transportation if needed

[oroszdb]

Alitalia has been in financial trouble for years perhaps decades and time after time again someone has been foolish enough (including the Italian government) has thrown money down this hole...that's exactly what the unions are counting on....could this be the end of the road? Perhaps - if I held reservations on them I'd be concerned but if I booked them through Celebrity (or a partner airline) I'd be less concerned as those entities should resolve any issues that arise - if I booked directly with Alitalia (as I would have done had I been traveling to IT anytime soon) I'd be very very concerned/nervous...the only thing you can really do at this moment is wait and see what falls out from the current situation...they won't stop flying in the immediate future

 

 

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[Mr. Click]

Yes you need to talk to Choice Air since they wrote your tickets. Hopefully you paid for your tickets with a credit card because if you did, the credit card company will back you up should the airline go into liquidation.

 

I just read an article in the NY Times that stated that with this latest bankruptcy the airline will be placed in the hands of a special administrator who will have 180 days to get things sorted out and into a plan for a return to profitability. If the special administrator and the courts cannot sort it out in 180 days then they would move towards liquidation of the entire company. With airlines, there are often mergers and aquisitions that are used to bring the bankrupt line back to life in some form. So, it looks like they will be flying for at least another 6 months but in that time you could see some cut backs on flights so keep a close watch on your reservation and stay in touch with Choice Air. If you push a bit they may even offer to switch you to another carrier.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/02/business/italy-alitalia-airline-bankruptcy.html?_r=0

[Knolmom]

Bloomberg Business seems to be indicating that if your flight is more than 6 months from now, you might want to look into alternatives, if possible. In addition, I thought I read on MY TRAVEL POLICY, which is NOT THRU THE CRUISELINE, that carrier or contractor bankruptcy is covered. Check your policy if you have one. Make sure your air IS bundled with the cruise. Can't imagine how choice air would not be covered, even under a private party insurance plan, unless you did not include the air amount in your coverage.

[cruiserchuck]

We also booked a flight on Alitalia with ChoiceAir. It is less than 180 days from now, so hopefully they will still be operating when we need to travel. We did purchase insurance, so we should be covered in any event. However, Alitalia has the only non-stop on the route we are flying, so hopefully we will not need to switch to another airline.

 

I just checked the ChoiceAir website, and for our cruise, they are no longer offering flights on Alitalia. I went to Alitalia's website, and the flights are still available for purchase.

Edited May 3, 2017 by cruiserchuck