Travel to and from the Italian island of Sicily is currently disrupted due to a volcanic eruption.
17.07.2024 - 20:10 / nytimes.com / Leonardo Da-Vinci
Millions of travelers pass through Italian airports every year, but most probably don’t know that Rome’s airport is named for Leonardo da Vinci, Pisa’s is named for Galileo Galilei, and Palermo’s is named for Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino, two prosecutors who were murdered in 1992 as payback for their anti-Mafia crusades.
But the decision this month to name Milan’s main international airport after Silvio Berlusconi, the media mogul and former Italian prime minister who died last year at age 86, did not go unnoticed.
The renaming of Milan Malpensa Airport as International Airport Milan Malpensa — Silvio Berlusconi has unleashed a maelstrom of protests from left-leaning lawmakers, a barrage of memes and an online petition to block the designation, which as of Wednesday had more than 160,000 signatures.
It also has made global headlines.
“Why not Bunga-Bunga airport,” said one, in a German-language publication, referring to the sex-fueled bacchanals at Mr. Berlusconi’s villa that he described as merely “elegant dinners.”
The polemics began immediately after the transportation minister, Matteo Salvini, the leader of the far-right League party and a political ally of Mr. Berlusconi, announced on July 5 that the country’s Civil Aviation Authority had approved a request from regional leaders to name the airport after Mr. Berlusconi. Mr. Salvini described him as “ a great businessman, great Milanese and great Italian.” The new name became official less than a week later, Mr. Salvini announced on social media.
Outrage followed.
“Airports are undoubtedly named after people who have brought prestige to Italy, and while Silvio Berlusconi was certainly a great entrepreneur and certainly a part of Italian politics, he was a divisive figure, loved by millions of Italians and opposed by as many millions of Italians who believed he used politics for personal gain,” said Silvia Roggiani, a national lawmaker with the center-left Democratic Party and the party’s regional secretary in Lombardy, where the airport is located, some 30 miles northwest of Milan.
Travel to and from the Italian island of Sicily is currently disrupted due to a volcanic eruption.
This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with an employee who has been on a "quiet vacation," which refers to taking time off without using PTO. The interviewee requested anonymity to protect their employment. Business Insider has verified their identity, employment, and travel with documentation. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
Jul 24, 2024 • 6 min read
It wasn't so long ago that America's most famous winemaking regions, the Napa and Sonoma valleys, attracted only a tiny and somewhat eccentric cohort of tourists. Then came the legendary Judgment of Paris competition in 1976, when two Napa wineries bested some of France's most prominent vintners in a blind tasting, helping to legitimize Northern California as a world-class wine destination.
Love is in the air as one of Italy’s most famous walking routes is set to reopen after more than a decade.
Two years ago, Gatwick had no flights to India, and today the airport connects around 24 weekly Air India flights to four cities — Kochi, Amritsar, Ahmedabad, and Goa. Next month, Air India will be connecting Bengaluru to London Gatwick. Catch Stephanie Wear, the vice president of aviation development, at London Gatwick Airport in conversation with Skift Asia Editor Peden Doma Bhutia on Gatwick’s ambitious plans for expanding its connectivity with India.
With incredible food and wine, idyllic villages, and stunning scenery, Italy is always a good idea. Many travelers seem to agree, choosing to spend their hard-earned PTO exploring this popular European destination.
All listings featured on Condé Nast Traveler are independently selected by our editors. If you book something through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Staff at several airports had to handwrite flight information on whiteboards due to a worldwide IT outage.
Editor note: This article has been updated with the latest information.
A new status match opportunity offers SkyPriority benefits on SkyTeam alliance flights like those operated by Delta Air Lines, and, in a unique twist, you can even match your expired status.
Low-cost Allegiant Airlines plans to close its crew and aircraft base at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) and reduce its routes by nearly a dozen early next year.