Welcome to my trip report on ITA Airways Part 1!
My ride: EI-MVB (Airbus A220-100)
Introduction
During my stay in London, I wanted to do a one day trip to somewhere nearby. Initially I was thinking of one of the budget airlines based in either Gatwick or Luton Airport but because London City Airport was closer to my accommodation and the lure to fly on the Airbus A220-100 once again was too much for me, I decided to fly with ITA Airways to Milan (LIN) in the morning and back in the evening. Not only I get to fly on a new airline (for my flight logbook), I also get to visit a new airport in Milan, Milan Linate Airport, the secondary airport located in the city of Milan. The Airbus A220 is considered to be rare in Asia and sadly it has not been able to gain new customers in that part of the world so far as the operating cost of the aircraft is higher than it's competitior, Embraer ERJ-190 E2. However from a passenger point of view, I prefer the A220 family for the more spacious and nicer cabin.
So without further ado, let's begin this trip report and get to know more about this airline.
Airline's mobile app/website
The user interface of both the website and mobile app are simple but easy to use. I was able to get my booking done without issue.
Just like any other airlines, if you book the lowest tier fare, you usually have to pay for the seat.
For the first flight, I decided to pay for the seat as I wanted a good view.
I had to pay about 22 pounds just for the seat, that is quite expensive when converted into Singapore dollars. (S$39)
Once that is completed, I was ready to go. Was I assigned a window seat on my return flight? Stay tuned for my part 2 to find out.
Overall I give this app and website a rating of 3.5/5.
Italia Transporto Aereo (ITA) is the national carrier of Italy, was founded in November 2020. The airline started operation about a year later and succeeded the previous national carrier, Alitalia. Once the Alitalia brand was successfully acquired by ITA, the airline operates routes on the former routes operating a full Airbus fleet comprising of Airbus A220-100/-300, Airbus A330-200/-900neo and the Airbus A350-900. The Italian government has decided to allow another company to take up a majority stake in this airline so that they can focus on other matters. The Lufthansa Group, MSC group, Delta Airlines and Air France-KLM group and the Indigo Partners expressed their interest in investing in this airline.
By January 2023, Lufthansa group made an offer to the government in which later on a letter of intent over the sales of the minority stake was signed and eventually the remaining shares of the airline would be purchased by the group in an extended period. By July 2024, the European Commision approved the Lufhansa's group acquisition and the group has offically acquired 41% of ITA, making it offically a member of the Lufthansa group, joining Lufthansa, Swiss Airlines, Austrian Airlines and Brussel Airlines.
Furthermore between 2025 and 2029, Lufthansa Group has an option to acquire a further 49% of ITA and also another option to acquire the remaining 10% after 2029. If that happens, ITA will become a wholly-owned subsidiary.
After Lufthansa Group announced the acquisition of ITA Airways, the airline and Skyteam alliance announced the departure of ITA Airways from the group and will then prepare to join the Star Alliance in the first half of 2026.
About London City Airport
London City Airport is an international airport located in the Borough of Newham, the eastern part of City of London. This airport was opened in October 1987 and operates on regional routes with British Airways' subsidairy, BA Cityflyer, which is the main operator in this airport. This small airport can handle only a terminal and single runway 09/27 and can handle small commercial aircraft up to the size of Airbus A220-100, ERJ-195-E2 and A318. There are special conditions that pilots must follow when flying in and out of this airport. These conditions are needed to meet the strict noise limitations during the operating hours as the location of the airport is in surrounded by residential areas.
The map layout of the airport
On the day of departure
This is the East India DLR Station, I deliberately book an accommodation near this station so that it would be faster for me to get to the LCY airport as the flight was departing at 0725.
It was quiet at around 6 in the morning but I didn't take long to wait for the train to arrive.
A convenient and economical way to get to the airport.
This is the way to get to the airport from the DLR train station.
The self check-in kiosk
The first flights of the day
Here we are, welcome to London City Airport! This was my first time departing out of this airport.
That's how the check-in desks look like. Complimentary Airport Wifi is available.
I received my boarding passes without any questions.
This is the airside of the departure hall.
A good place to hang around waiting for your flight gate assignment.
There are a few cafes to enjoy a meal before departure.
Let's check out the gates.
This is BA Cityflyer ERJ-190 E1.
The walkway towards the gates.
You are able to view the traffic of the tarmac from the windows of the corridor which lead to the end of the pier.
Somehow the interior reminds me of a hospital.
This is the waiting area near gate 7.
Another BA Cityflyer ERJ-190 being prepared for departure.
Some of the seats have charging ports.
Only USB-A ports and 3 pin socket are available.
The flight information
That is my aircraft, parking at a corner of the airport.
My flight was departing from gate 10.
What a beautiful morning.
Soon, the gate area with filled with passengers on my flight.
It was time to go and at this gate, the passengers can walk to the aircraft.
My ride: EI-MVB
What a beautiful livery, don't you agree?
Formerly registered as I-ADVB.
A few reasons why ITA Airways registered their aircraft in Ireland (EI) is because the country has a more favorable tax environment which results to better financing of the aircraft.
Airbus A220-100 (CS100)
Aircraft name: Andrea Giana W
Delivered to airline in June 2024 as I-ADVB and was re-registered in December 2024 to become EI-MVB.
Configuration: CY125
Engines: 2 X PW1524G
MSN: 50075
Built in Montreal Mirabel (YMX)
Flight Route: LCY-LIN
Miles: 595
My seat: 7A (Aerolopa.com)
Date of departure: 26th February 2025
Airline: ITA Airways
Flight: AZ217
Route: LCY-LIN
Aircraft: Airbus A220-100
Seat: 7A
Registration: EI-MVB
Gate: 10
Load: 80%
Schedule Departure: 0725
Boarding: 0656
Engine Start Up: 0716
Take Off: 0725
Flight Time: 1hr 30 minutes
Actual Flight Time: 1hr 26 minutes
Schedule Arrival: 1015
Actual Arrival: 0951
Departure Runway: 27
Departure Weather: Partially Cloudy
Arrival Runway: 35
Arrival Weather: Cloudy
My inflight experience
Boarding was according to zone and as this aircraft is a small one, it didn't take long for all the passengers to be on board. The cabin interior looks very nice but when it comes to the seat comfort, the legroom space is not good, I find it quite cramp.
Once everyone was on board and the cabin doors were closed. No tow truck was required as we were able to taxi out from our parking lot and made our way to the runway. The Captain made the usual welcome speech announcement and informed us to expect some good flying condition along the way except for the take off. After a powerful climb out of London, we flew south-east towards Italy and true enough there was some minor bumps during our climb. After reaching our flight level, the cabin crew started their duty and soon we were given a packet of snack and a choice of beverage. The inflight service was ok and apart from the crampy legroom space, the comfort level of the A220 is great as I find the cabin to be quite spacious and roomy. However for this aircraft, the wifi was not working so there was no entertainment available on this flight.
The rest of the flight was uneventful and even though the weather at Milan was dominated with grey clouds threatening to rain at any moment that time, the ride was smooth and we landed ahead of schedule.
Business Class
This is a typical Euro Business Class configuration identical to Economy Class. The only difference is the some of the seats are being blocked out to give the passengers more legroom space to themselves.
Along with the economy class, these are the Safran Z400 leather upholstered seats arranged in a 2-3 configuration. There are 125 seats altogether in this Airbus A220-100 aircraft.
Each seat has a seat width of 18 inches, legroom space of 30 inches except row 10 (Emergency row with more spacious legroom space) and all seats except row 9 can recline up to 3 inches.
An ITA Airways cabin crew's uniform.
For the business class cabin, the left side has 2 seats which one of the seats will be blocked out.
Personally these seats in Europe should be rebranded to Premium Economy Class and passengers just need to top up more for lounge access and priority check-in and luggage tag. What do you all think?
This is the last row of the business class.
The seat looks elegant and comfortable.
Economy Class
From row 5 to row 27. These seats also comes with an adjustable headrest, moveable armrests and a retractable tablet holder.
There is an adjustable divider with a curtain to be used during the flight.
As long as the seats are the same, for such short flights it operates, flying on the economy class makes more sense to me.
There is a jacket hook on the side of each seat.
Notice how big the size of the window.
This is my seat 7A.
More photos of the Economy Class seat
Type A and C charging ports are available.
Legroom space is tight.
There is a device holder located just beside the charging ports.
The foldable tray table
The mobile phone device holder
I am quite impressed with the window size.
The view of the winglet and engine.
What's provided for each passenger?
A disposal bag
Safety Card
A snack and a beverage of my choice - coffee.
QR code to access the wifi and the charging ports.
Window view photos (Take off to Landing)
The view from my seat after settling down.
Rolling down the runway.
V1... rotate.
We had to made a very steep climb as part of the take off procedure in this airport.
We were high up in within a minute. That was an enjoyable take off.
The day has begun and it was a nice ride towards Milan.
At this point, we have reached our assigned flight level.
Enjoying some good view like these photos below.
At this point, we started our descent.
We flew through some clouds but there was no turbulence.
The weather in Milan was gloomy.
On approach to runway 35.
We touched down smoothly.
With the reverse thrust deployed, we slowed down to taxi speed.
ITA Airways livery certainly helps to brighten up this gloomy weather.
Here we are, we parked at a remote parking lot where an airport bus ferried us to the terminal.
My Flight summary
Thanks for the ride, EI-MVB!
Welcome to Milan Linate Airport (LIN)!
Immigration process was straight forward and it took less than 10 minutes to clear.
This is the arrival hall.
This is the view outside the terminal of LIN Airport.
To be continued! Hope you enjoyed the part 1 of my ITA Airways experience!
My ratings
Airline Website/Mobile App: 3.5/5
Airport Experience (LCY): 3.5/5
Inflight Service: 4/5
Seat Comfort: 4/5
Inflight Entertainment: 0/5 (Inflight Wifi not working)
Cabin Ambiance: 5/5
Condition of the aircraft : 4/5
Cleanliness: 5/5
InFlight Meal/Beverage: 4/5
Punctuality: 5/5
Overall Rating: 38/50
Percentage: 76%
Conclusion
It was a pleasant flight experience on board ITA's A220-100 from London City Airport to Milan's Linate Airport, flying on Italy's new national carrier which offers a good economy class product. With the flashing distinguish blue livery across the fleet, it's hard not to recognise this aircraft from the distance. I find the seats to be comfortable apart from the legroom space and the lack of IFE Screen was made up by the WiFi - online streaming (unfortunately it was not working on my aircraft) and the usb charging ports offering both USB-A and I think other airlines should include USB-C ports on their new seats.
Although I picked the right side of the aircraft to capture the airport view, I was unable to take any decent photo during the take off because of the condensation and the dirty window making it challenging to snap a decent photo. So the photos you see at my window view section are the best I could do.
I was glad we were given a complimentary and snack on this short flight and for the inflight service, it was ok. Overall I enjoyed this A220 flight, it is certainly a great aircraft to fly on from a pax point of view.
For my part 2 of my ITA Airways Experience (LIN-LCY), click here
For my previous trip report (Air China Airbus A350-900 PEK-LHR), click here
Have a good one!
Charles
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