On October 26, 2021, Blue Panorama suspended flights, making it the fourth Italian airline to fold since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis.
Blue Panorama has become the “umpteenth victim of the crisis”, according to a joint statement made by three Italian trade unions, Filt Cgil, Fit Cisl, and Uiltrasporti, which was released the following day.
On October 27, 2021, Filt Cgil, Fit Cisl, Uiltrasporti announced in the joint statement that Blue Panorama had suspended flights the previous night.
The secretary of Uil Air Transport Ivan Viglietti told local press that the airline’s planes were stopped at various airports. The unions continued to monitor the situation and hoped the situation was “temporary”, Viglietti said.
The unions also stated that the situation in the sector, especially for Italian operators, was worsening and that “the entire supply chain is in a state of crisis”. Across the country’s aviation industry, tens of thousands of jobs were at risk, the statement read, adding that “quick solutions” and “shock absorbers” were needed for the whole of 2022.
The statement lists Norwegian and three Italian airlines, Alitalia, Air Italy, and Ernest, that have allegedly fallen victim to the crisis. Air Italy ceased operations and went into liquidation in February 2020.
Following years of financial trouble and having been officially in administration since 2017, Alitalia, the country’s flag carrier, made its last flight in October 2021. Ernest Airlines, an Italian low-cost carrier, ceased operations in January 2020. Air Italy stopped its own flights and went into liquidation the following month, in February 2020.
Norwegian Air Sources Italy filed for bankruptcy in February 2021