United Airlines and Italy’s ITA Airways announce codeshare partnership ahead of Star Alliance entry

As part of the codeshare arrangement, ITA will place its "AZ" code on United-operated flights to several U.S. airports such as Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Denver International Airport (DEN), and Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH). The two airlines share gateways at Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), and Dulles International Airport (IAD) near Washington, D.C.

In Europe, United will use its "UA" code on select ITA flights to destinations including Florence Airport (FLR), Catania-Fontanarossa Airport (CTA), and Turin Airport (TRN) in Italy. Connections between the carriers will be available at Brussels Airport (BRU), Frankfurt Airport (FRA), and Rome Fiumicino Leonardo da Vinci Airport (FCO).

The partnership is also expected to pave the way for ITA’s entry into an existing joint venture between Air Canada, Lufthansa Group, and United Airlines. Such joint ventures allow participating airlines to coordinate schedules, fares, and sales across markets—in this case, transatlantic routes between North America and Europe.

Lufthansa Group CEO Carsten Spohr addressed the strategic necessity of integrating ITA: “If you force ITA to fly against all three American carriers, who are all like 10-times the size of ITA, and even Emirates that also operates on the North Atlantic out of Milan, ITA will have no sustainable future,” Spohr said in 2024.

Further details about the full integration timeline for ITA into these partnerships have not been announced.