Alitalia is attracting attention from European carriers

Alitalia has three major interested buyers - Lufthansa, Ryanair and EasyJet - which are only looking at the aviation division rather than the combined aviation and handling divisions. Italian Minister of Transport Graziano Delrio advanced the possibility of allocating more public money to Alitalia, after the US$654 million loan, to extend the bailout pending major offers.

Europe's two insolvent airlines, Alitalia and Air Berlin could ultimately go to either Lufthansa or Ryanair, which have competing bids for both airlines. That isn't the only link between the two auctioned airlines, as they both share a past with shareholder Etihad, who led the carriers to bankruptcy. To make matters more complicated, Germany says Air Berlin must be sold in parts while Italy prefers Alitalia be sold whole.