Revitalized Air Italy has reported strong summer season passenger loads on its new flights to the US and has announced frequency increases on several of its international routes. The Sardinia-based carrier, which rebranded from its former identity of Meridiana in March following Qatar Airways’ decision to take a 49% stake in its parent company, AQA Holdings, is in the middle of a major fleet expansion program.

Qatar Airways is leasing five of its Airbus A330-200s to Air Italy this year, replacing aging Boeing 767-300s. The A330s will, in turn, be replaced from May 2019 by new Boeing 787-8s taken from Qatar Airways’ existing orders with the US manufacturer. Air Italy will also receive 20 Boeing 737 MAX 8s—again, from Qatar’s orderbook.