ITA Airways to join Japan-Europe joint venture this autumn
From autumn 2026, Lufthansa Group and All Nippon Airways (ANA) will expand their strategic Europe Japan Joint Venture to include ITA Airways. Representatives of both groups signed the agreement on the Italian carrier's entry on 7 June 2026 at the IATA annual general meeting in Rio de Janeiro.
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The joint venture between Lufthansa and ANA was established in 2012, later joined by SWISS and Austrian Airlines. It will now expand to include ITA Airways, deepening cooperation on ITA's European routes, its domestic Italian services, destinations in the Maghreb, and the long-haul route between Rome-Fiumicino and Tokyo-Haneda. Cooperation in Italy previously covered ANA's flight from Tokyo-Haneda to Milan-Malpensa.
A key point of the agreement is ITA Airways' hub at Rome-Fiumicino airport, from where the Italian flag carrier operates a daily direct flight to Tokyo-Haneda. Both airports have received the maximum five-star rating from Skytrax. From this autumn, customers of ANA, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines and SWISS will also be able to book this intercontinental flight and freely combine it with their own connecting flights.
According to Lufthansa Group, the rollout of the joint offer among the partners is set to begin gradually from autumn 2026, with customers to be informed of availability once the offer is ready.
Since the joint venture also includes ITA Airways' connecting flights to Rome, passengers travelling to Japan will gain additional transfer options. According to Lufthansa Group, the southern hub in Rome will shorten travel times to and from Japan, particularly for destinations in southern Europe, the Mediterranean and North Africa. Beyond Tokyo-Haneda, ANA also offers ITA Airways passengers numerous connecting flights within its domestic network in Japan.
Passengers of all participating carriers will be able to use the relevant lounges in Rome and Tokyo, and the airlines will mutually recognise each other's tickets and loyalty programmes.
The necessary antitrust approval (Anti Trust Immunity) was granted by Japanese authorities several weeks ago. Thanks to the agreement, the participating carriers can jointly coordinate flight schedules and better distribute departure times throughout the day. According to Lufthansa Group, customers of all five airlines involved will thus find a comparable level of product and service on flights between Japan and Europe. Between Europe and Japan alone, the joint venture offers 160 long-haul flights per week, with the flexibility to combine long-haul flights with regional connecting services at Tokyo-Haneda airport and at Lufthansa Group's five hub airports.
- Joint venture established
- 2012
- ITA Airways entry
- autumn 2026
- Agreement signed
- 7 June 2026, Rio de Janeiro
- Weekly long-haul flights
- 160
- Skytrax airport rating
- 5 stars
ANA President and CEO Juichi Hirasawa said that the partnership with Lufthansa Group, ahead of the joint venture's upcoming 15th anniversary, allows the companies to offer travellers between Japan and Europe a smooth, high-quality travel experience, and that ITA Airways' entry opens access to Rome and more convenient journeys to Italy, southern Europe and the Mediterranean. ITA Airways CEO Jörg Eberhart described the entry into the joint venture as an important milestone in the company's international development, strengthening the carrier's links to the Asia-Pacific region and giving customers more travel options and better-connected services.
Developments in connections between Europe and Japan, including ITA Airways' route from Rome-Fiumicino (FCO) to Tokyo-Haneda (HND), can be followed on map.flights.