Air Italy went from 55-year-old regional to Alitalia challenger and collapsed in 2 years

Meridiana was founded in 1963 as Alisarda by Prince Karim Aga Khan to serve Sardinia's growing tourism market. Over five decades it grew into a respected regional airline carrying 3.5 million passengers by 2000. But by 2013 it was in financial trouble — the Aga Khan injected €190 million to keep it going.

In September 2017, Qatar Airways acquired 49% of AQA Holding, the company controlling Meridiana. The plan was to rebrand as Air Italy and add long-haul routes to New York, Miami, Bangkok and Mumbai, positioning the airline as Italy's second national carrier. On 1 March 2018, the new Air Italy launched with Airbus A330s leased from Qatar and new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft.

The strategy unravelled quickly. Air Italy faced fierce competition from Alitalia on every long-haul route. The Boeing 737 MAX grounding in March 2019 grounded three of its new aircraft, forcing expensive replacements. By end of 2019, losses reached €230 million. In February 2020, Alisarda and Qatar Airways voted to liquidate — all 1,450 employees were made redundant. The airline had lasted less than two years.