Italy's ITA Airways will land in Texas next summer.
The carrier will link its Rome Fiumicino Leonardo da Vinci Airport (FCO) hub with Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) with seasonal service beginning May 1, 2026, ITA said Tuesday.
ITA will offer three flights a week — Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays — from May 1 through May 31. Then, on June 1, it will increase service to five weekly flights, on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, through Oct. 24. The FCO-IAH route will be flown with an Airbus A330-900.
"This is our ninth North American destination and will further enrich the airline’s intercontinental network," said Joerg Eberhart, CEO of ITA, in a statement. "With this new route, we consolidate our expansion in the U.S. market, our most important international market."
Among its eight U.S. destinations, ITA serves Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Miami International Airport (MIA), New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Washington, D.C.'s Dulles International Airport (IAD). It also serves Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) in Canada.
The new route is ITA's latest step into the Lufthansa Group and Star Alliance. The group bought a 41% stake in the Italian airline in January and plans to take full control of the carrier by 2027. As part of the deal, ITA is realigning everything from its schedule to loyalty program to the Lufthansa Group and its club of global partners, including United Airlines.
ITA's new FCO-IAH route links its main hub with United's large IAH hub — which is also a gateway for the carrier to Latin America.
In an October interview, Eberhart named IAH and Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), another United hub, as potential future destinations for ITA in the U.S.
The Italian carrier is in the process of joining the Star Alliance (which is expected to occur next year) and launched a loyalty tie-up with United in September. And, ITA plans to merge its Volare loyalty program with Lufthansa's Miles & More program by February.
ITA will be the first airline to fly the FCO-IAH route nonstop.
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