There is scope for more consolidation in Europe's airline sector, the chief executive of Germany's Lufthansa said on Monday, having just bought a 41% stake in Italy's state-owned ITA Airways.Lufthansa paid 325 million euros ($332 million) for the ITA deal and last week agreed to buy a 10% stake in Latvian airline airBaltic.

The full integration of ITA Airways into the Lufthansa Group is already underway, with the Italian carrier also set to join Star Alliance in 2026.

Lufthansa Group remains a minority shareholder in Italy’s national carrier, but it’s already leveraging the benefits of its 41% stake.

Germany's Lufthansa will start making money from its investment in ITA Airways from this year, the chief executive of the German carrier, Carsten Spohr, said on Monday. Spohr added that ITA would join the Star alliance,

Lufthansa Group has begun integrating ITA Airways after acquiring a 41% stake, starting with loyalty programmes and moving to share codes on routes. ITA loyalty members can now earn miles on Lufthansa Group flights,