Editing C.A.I. First

{{Short description|Defunct regional airline of Italy (1997–2015)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}
{{Infobox airline
| airline          = C.A.I. First<ref name=iata>{{cite web|title=IATA - Codes - Airline and Airport Code Search|url=http://www.iata.org/publications/Pages/code-search.aspx|website=iata.org|publisher=IATA|access-date=1 September 2014}}</ref>
| logo             = Logo Alitalia express.png
| logo_size        = 
| alt              = 
| caption          = 
| IATA             = XM<ref name=iata />
| ICAO             = SMX
| callsign         = ALIEXPRESS
| founded          = {{start date|1997|10|01|df=yes}}
| commenced        = 
| ceased           = {{end date|2015|02|06|df=yes}}<br />{{small|(integrated into [[Alitalia]])}}
| aoc              = 
| bases            = {{ubl|class=nowrap
  | [[Milan Linate Airport|Milan–Linate]]
  | [[Milan Malpensa Airport|Milan–Malpensa]] {{small|(1998–2008)}}
  | [[Rome Fiumicino Airport|Rome–Fiumicino]]}}
| hubs             = 
| secondary_hubs   = 
| focus_cities     = 
| frequent_flyer   = MilleMiglia
| lounge           = 
| alliance         = {{ubl|class=nowrap
  | [[SkyTeam]] {{small|(affiliate; 2001–2015)}}
  | [[Wings Alliance]] {{small|(affiliate)}}}}
| subsidiaries     = 
| fleet_size       = 
| destinations     = 
| company_slogan   = 
| parent           = {{nowrap|[[Alitalia]]}}
| headquarters     = [[Fiumicino, Rome|Fiumicino]], [[Rome]], [[Italy]]
| key_people       = 
| revenue          = 
| operating_income = 
| net_income       = 
| profit           = 
| assets           = 
| equity           = 
| num_employees    = 
| website          = 
}}

'''C.A.I. First S.p.A.''' was<ref name="closure"/> an Italian airline operating flights for its parent company, [[Alitalia]], to preserve slots at [[Milan Linate Airport]]. For this reason Alitalia when merged with [[Air One]] didn't close C.A.I. First, which at that time still operated as '''Alitalia Express'''. It used to have bases at [[Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport]] in Rome and [[Malpensa Airport]] in Milan.<ref name="FI">{{cite news | title= Directory: World Airlines | work= [[Flight International]] | page= 73 | date= 27 March 2007}}</ref> C.A.I. First was dissolved and merged into Alitalia mainline by February 2015.<ref name="closure"/>

The name ''C.A.I. First'' was only a legal name and wasn't used in public, all of its flights were branded as ''Alitalia''.

==History==

===Early years===
[[File:Embraer 170-100LR, Alitalia Express JP6898134.jpg|thumb|Alitalia Express [[Embraer E-Jet family|Embraer 170]]]]
The airline was established as a subsidiary of [[Alitalia]] and started operations on 1 October 1997. It was founded from the defunct [[Avianova (Italy)|Avianova]]. It was announced that [[Minerva Airlines]] would be acquired by Alitalia in March 2003 and that Alitalia Express's fleet would be transferred, but the plan did not go through.{{citation needed|date=August 2021}}

===Air One and Alitalia merger===
In December 2008, [[Compagnia Aerea Italiana]] (C.A.I.) took over [[Alitalia - Linee Aeree Italiane]] and [[Air One]], merging the two companies together to create the "new [[Alitalia]]". With the take over, CAI also received Alitalia Express and [[Air One CityLiner]]. The Alitalia Express brand has been phased out and the regional arm of Alitalia is now Alitalia CityLiner by rebranding Air One CityLiner.{{citation needed|date=August 2021}}

The last fleet of Alitalia Express, 10 [[Embraer 170]], was completely phased out by March 2013. Only one [[Airbus A320-200]] (EI-DSC) from mainline Alitalia was moved in the fleet to preserve the slots. The same solution had been used with [[C.A.I. Second]] which used to be ''Volareweb.com''.

On 6 February 2015, the airline was dissolved and its operations integrated into Alitalia mainline.<ref name="closure">{{Cite web|url=http://ch-aviation.com/portal/news/36016-alitalia-cancels-cai-first-and-seconds-aocs|title=Alitalia cancels CAI First and Second's AOCs}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.enac.gov.it/Aeroporti_e_Compagnie_Aeree/Compagnie_aeree/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090322225911/http://www.enac.gov.it/Aeroporti_e_Compagnie_Aeree/Compagnie_aeree/index.html |archive-date=22 March 2009 |title=Enac - Compagnie aeree}}</ref>

== Fleet ==
Prior to its shutdown in February 2015, the fleet consisted of the following aircraft:

{| class="toccolours" border="1" cellpadding="3" style="border-collapse:collapse; border-collapse:collapse; text-align:center; margin:1em auto;"
|+ '''C.A.I. First Fleet'''
|- style="background:darkgreen;"
! rowspan="2"  style="width:125px;"| <span style="color:white;">Aircraft</span>
! rowspan="2" style="width:60px;" rowspan="2" | <span style="color:white;">In Fleet</span>
! colspan="4" | <span style="color:white;">Passengers</span>
|- style="background:darkgreen; color:black;"
! style="width:25px;" | <abbr title="Business Class"><span style="color:white;">J</span></abbr>
! style="width:25px;" | <abbr title="Premium Economy"><span style="color:white;">Y+</span></abbr>
! style="width:25px;" | <abbr title="Economy Class"><span style="color:white;">Y</span></abbr>
! style="width:25px;" | <span style="color:white;"> Total</span>
|-
|[[Airbus A320-200]] 
|1
|34
|—
|114
|148
|-
!Total
!1
!colspan="6"|
|}

=== Fleet history ===
Over the years, Alitalia Express has operated the following aircraft types:{{Cn|date=February 2025}}

{| style="margin:1em auto;"
| STYLE="vertical-align: top"|
{| class="toccolours sortable" border="1" cellpadding="5" style="border-collapse:collapse; text-align:center"
|+ '''[[List of aircraft operated by Alitalia|Alitalia Express Historical Fleet]]'''
|- bgcolor=darkgreen
!<span style="color:white;">Aircraft</span>
!<span style="color:white;">Image</span>
!<span style="color:white;">Introduced</span>
!<span style="color:white;">Retired</span>
!<span style="color:white;">Total</span>
|-
|[[ATR 42-300]]
|[[File:133ap - Alitalia Express ATR 42-300; I-NOWT@ZRH;20.06.2001 (6113139926).jpg|150px]]
|1996
|2007
|9
|-
|[[ATR 72-212]]
|[[File:ATR 72-212, Alitalia Express JP6366794.jpg|150px]]
|1996
|2008
|5
|-
|[[ATR 72-500]]
|[[File:Alitalia Express ATR 72 Jonsson-1.jpg|150px]]
|1999
|2008
|6
|-
|[[Embraer ERJ 145LR]]
|[[File:Alitalia Embraer ERJ-145, I-EXMM@DUS,11.03.2007-453kd - Flickr - Aero Icarus.jpg|150px]]
|2000
|2008
|14
|-
|[[Embraer 170]]
|[[File:Embraer 170-100LR, Alitalia Express JP342553.jpg|150px]]
|2004
|2012
|6
|-
|[[Dornier 328]]
|[[File:D-CPRV Air Alps Aviation (2242497938).jpg|150px]]
|2000
|2004
|10<br />operated by<br />[[Minerva Airlines]]{{Cn|date=February 2025}}
|}
|}

==See also==
* [[List of defunct airlines of Italy]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category-inline|Alitalia Express}}

{{Portal bar|Italy|Companies|Aviation}}
{{Airlines of Italy}}
{{SkyTeam}}

[[Category:Airlines established in 1997]]
[[Category:Airlines disestablished in 2015]]
[[Category:Alitalia]]
[[Category:Defunct airlines of Italy]]
[[Category:Italian companies established in 1997]]
[[Category:Italian companies disestablished in 2015]]
[[Category:Former SkyTeam affiliate members]]