As La Compagnie makes inroads into the Italian market, new aircraft will soon join the fleet.
Confident about the Newark-Milan route
“Business is tougher, competition is fiercer, but overall we expect demand, by the end of the financial year in October, and to be close to budget, with the exception of fuel costs, which have risen significantly." Christian Vernet, CEO of La Compagnie, remains confident about the performance of the current financial year, particularly on the Newark-Milan route, which has faced more than one challenge. From “concerns over immigration and restrictions on foreign nationals entering the US, something that initially made tourists somewhat reluctant to travel to the United States, but which has now stabilized somewhat. The result is that demand has not been as strong as we expected’ and the booking window "has narrowed quite significantly. In other words, people are postponing their decision to travel. And this is the current situation, to which we must and are adapting."
Operating with two A321neo aircraft
“We are determined to increase our capacity in order to offer daily flights as soon as possible. We are currently operating two A321neo aircraft. The third is on its way: delivery is scheduled for February 2027 although we had expected this sooner. With this aircraft, we will be able to launch new routes in Europe from Newark. A fourth aircraft will arrive in 2028, and it will be an A321neo XLR, which will expand our flight offering from every destination we serve, particularly in Italy, though we are still evaluating other locations as well.”
Aiming for daily flights
The carrier’s 100% business-class, combined with "truly premium" ground and in-flight services, appears to have been well received in the Italian market, given that La Compagnie launched the Milan Malpensa–Newark route in 2022, right in the midst of the post-Covid period: “Since then, we have carried around 112,000 passengers between the two cities and operated around 2,100 flights. We currently offer 5–6 flights a week, and aim to increase this to daily flights as soon as possible, once the third aircraft arrives.
"75% leisure traffic and 20–25% cheaper"
On the Milan route, the airline “has captured 18% of passengers, although I think that we deserve more. Increasing our brand awareness is one of the areas where we need to work harder.” Some 75% of this traffic is leisure, with a high proportion of American passengers for whom Italy is an unmissable holiday destination “I would point out that our offering boasts, in any case, affordable prices. On average we are 20–25% cheaper, and sometimes even 30% cheaper, than other airlines. And this makes a huge difference, both for the leisure market and for the business market, which often includes SMEs with budget constraints.”
