Review of ITA Airways flight from Rome to Dubai in Premium Eco

ITY

AZ - ITA Airways

Flight taken on 18 November 2024
856
10:40 06h 10m 19:50
Class Premium Eco
Seat 20A
DavidZ
1,216 · 28 · 4 · 30

Buongiorno from Rome. I have just arrived from Milan-Linate and am now connecting to Dubai onboard AZ in Premium Economy (branded just as "Premium"). My report will cover the leg from FCO all the way to DXB. It will be the first time I fly with the Italian national airline on a longer haul flight. They've just introduced (or re-introduced depending on how you look at it) flights to Dubai this autumn. Alitalia previously used to operate this route from Milan-MXP and Rome many years ago with 767s, A330s, and 777s.

I'm happy to see AZ bounce back as ITA, and efficient profitable now. Although, I think MXP is a far better choice for a strategic hub rather than FCO and I would have preferred for it to have gone in the hands of Air France and KLM as a SkyTeam member. It would have been the most logical choice rather than Lufthansa, and unfortunately I fear that Carsten Spohr's cost-cutting will ruin the good service on AZ. But, BoB is coming to AF-KL as well thanks to Ben Smith. I don't know how to feel about that.

I digress. Now let's get back to the flight.


Ground experience and connection


I disembark, follow the signs to E gates, and go through passport control. The non-Schengen duty free area greets me. Unfortunately, today it smelled very strongly like excrement and everyone could tell. So I sped through it as fast as humanly possible and waited at the end.


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Once the gate, in my case E7, was shown, I proceeded downstairs to board. Boarding started slightly late but was efficient, swift, and completed on time. I had SkyPriority and was one of the first to board in Zone 1. Unfortunately, this was a bus gate and that meant they let everyone onto the same buses. So much for priority…



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Boarding


Once onboard, I settled into my seat, which was a nice spacious Safran Z535i recliner with the Walter de Silva design. The IFE screen is rather large and high definition, the system is RAVE. Both the screen and systems are identical to the new Air France cabins. Unfortunately, the selection left a lot to be desired. The premium noise-cancelling headphones were of good quality.



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Doors were closed, armed, and cross-checked. We were then offered a welcome drink, and chose from water, juice, or spumante. I went for the latter. Hot towels were also offered.



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We pushed back perfectly on time. The sports-themed safety video was then shown, which is very cute. It was produced in partnership with the CONI and the Italia Team "Azzurri" (lit. "the Blues"). The English accent voice is a bit forced. It would be even nicer to have a cultural-inspired safety video.

Anyway, the PW engines are powered, roll on RWY 16R and we take off in no time. The views on climb were spectacular.



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Inflight service


After we reach cruising attitude, lunch is served. There are 3 hot main course options: beef with potato mash and courgettes, fish, or pasta. I go for the former which was tender, succulent, and very tasty. I devoured it. The meal is very good and comes with real porcelain plates and glasses. I didn't touch the appetiser/salad, but the dessert, a sort of tiramisu sponge cake with cream layers was indulgent and oh-so-divine. It was accompanied by a nice but small piece of focaccia bread and a chocolate-coated biscuit. Drinks are offered, including coffee and tea, and I have some red wine and still water.

Some things like the tray feel cheap but the rest is very high quality. I would like to see printed menus and maybe a better choice of beverages. They also took too long to clear up the trays. All in all, it was passable.


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I went to the lavatory and Premium passengers can only use the Economy ones at the back. I went to the aft and I find a long queue. After a lengthy wait for my turn, I see the lav which is small and in absolutely horribly abysmal condition, especially for an aircraft this new. It was dirty and one of the glass panels in the mirror was broken. The sink was minuscule. I'm skinny but this is claustrophobic for me too so I cannot imagine for many others. The crew was rushing in the galley and obviously didn't even have time to check or clean them and I see a crew member who burned her hand in the small, tight rear galley.

Unfortunately this is a problem of the A321neo being a smaller aircraft, and not what passengers should expect, especially for such a flight from a hub to a flagship destination like Dubai. I hope ITA will deploy bigger widebody aircraft on its Dubai flights.



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I try to get some shut-eye and will be successful for almost 1 hour of good quality rest. I didn't sleep but I relaxed. The pillow and blanket provided are very nice and comfortable.


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In the meantime, we are crossing the Red Sea and then enroute over Saudi Arabia.



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Cruising over the mystical Saudi landscapes…



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Nearly 1 hour and 50 minutes out of Dubai, I am surprised by the crew with a second service and a light hot meal is offered. It's a hot pocket-style tomato and mozzarella calzone, which is hearty and filling. It's served alongside a delicious pastry, a white chocolate and berry compote-filled crostata or tartlet. There is a drink service, and I have a coffee and some water. This is somewhere where ITA shine. Their soft product is well superior to many other airlines in the market.



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We get closer and closer to the PG. Amazing views can be seen.




I get to chat with some of the crew about this new route and the new company, who were very friendly and available.

The rest of the flight goes by and is uneventful. We start approaching DXB and the descent is light and delicate.



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We land in Dubai at 19:20 local time, half an hour early. Very efficient. The landing was so smooth I almost didn't feel it, an absolute butter which has very far to matter in smaller aircraft like the A320s, which matches my experience on other flights with them. Even EK A380s don't land this well. AZ pilots tend to be some of the most professional, prepared, knowledgable, well-trained, attentive, and safety-concious in the industry. All thanks to their in-house formation academy which is one is the best. In fact, other airlines' aircraft tend to take off and climb steeper and land worse than AZ, and unlike AZ, their pilots reckless and irresponsible.

Arrival and disembarkation will be lengthy and with a bus gate, a big thumbs down for Dubai Airport handling. There was a huge queue at immigration and arrival but at least I didn't have to wait for my checked bags as I had priority. I was tried and didn't take any pictures so I will leave you here. I had a pleasant flight with ITA and would definitely not hesitate to travel with them once again. As I said before, I was pleasantly surprised by some things that surpassed my expectations on this flight, less so for some other things. ITA has potential. If ITA makes some adjustments and improvements, the right decisions, and undergoes a well-managed expansion plan, they can well and truly be one of Europe's leading airlines.

Arrivederci !

Display all

Product ratings

Airline

ITA Airways 8.0

  • Cabin7.5 / 10
  • Cabin crew8.5 / 10
  • Entertainment/wifi7.0 / 10
  • Meal/catering9.0 / 10
Departure airport

Rome - FCO6.1

  • Efficiency8.0 / 10
  • Access6.5 / 10
  • Services7.5 / 10
  • Cleanliness2.5 / 10
Arrival Airport

Dubai - DXB6.1

  • Efficiency3.0 / 10
  • Access9.0 / 10
  • Services8.5 / 10
  • Cleanliness4.0 / 10

Conclusion

Overall, a very pleasant flight.

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Comments (4)

  • It's nice seeing a review of AZ's A21N W product! ITA never does a good job at keeping clean lavatories, as I noticed when I flew another one of their A21Ns back in July.

  • Great to see a review on the new A321neo's Premium Economy---I believe this is the first one I've seen! With the 2-2 configuration this is exactly like regional Business class on a narrowbody. The meal looks really nice as well. Overall a well above average experience for long-haul Premium Economy.

    Thanks for sharing!

    • Thank you for your comment ! Yes, it was a lovely inflight experience, above average for W. The recliner was very comfortable and the service was good. Glad you enjoyed reading.

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