Dnata subsidiary Airport Handling to handle ground operations in Rome

The license is for next seven years, and the company is targeting to launch operations in the second quarter of 2024.

Airport Handling has committed an investment of over €20 million ($21.87 million) to purchase new ground support equipment (GSE), including advanced electric vehicles. It will also provide a range of quality and safe ramp and passenger services to airlines in Rome.

The company is targeting to employ over 1,800 customer-oriented aviation professionals at FCO and has already recruited a local senior management team, which is very familiar with the Rome market.

Airport Handling’s expansion into Rome further strengthens its position as a leading air services provider in Italy. A trusted partner of over 60 airlines, the company’s dedicated teams already handle more than 22 million passengers and 82,000 flights annually at the two Milan airports, Malpensa (MXP) and Linate (LIN).

Alberto Morosi, CEO of Airport Handling, said: “We are proud to have secured operating license at another leading Italian airport as a result of a highly competitive tender process. Expanding into Rome Fiumicino is a significant milestone that aligns with our growth strategy and underlines our commitment to consistently enhancing our operations.

“We look forward to working with the airport to deliver high quality and safe services for our airline customers and their passengers travelling to or through Rome.”

Dnata: Global air services powerhouse

dnata, a leading global air and travel services provider, is the majority stakeholder of Airport Handling. The Dubai-based dnata operates at over 120 airports globally. Besides its ground handling business, dnata also provides catering & retail services at all major Italian airports, including Rome Fiumicino.

Serving over 300 airlines, dnata’s teams handled more than 710,000 aircraft turns, moved over 2.7 million tonnes of cargo and uplifted 111.4 million meals in the financial year 2022-23.