Maurizio Prato, the chairman of Alitalia, resigned on Wednesday night saying the beleaguered Italian flag carrier was cursed and “only an exorcist can save it”. This was after Air France-KLM walked away in the face of continuing union resistance to its restructuring plans for its proposed takeover of Alitalia.

Under the circumstances, the obvious question now is whether Alitalia can still be rescued. If so, is there an exorcist – or rather a miracle worker – around to jump into the cockpit. One thing at least is clear. Everybody in Italy has finally woken up to the hard reality that Alitalia has reached the end of the runway. Huge expectations had been placed on the French. And by walking out, the French, ironically, may have done Italy a favour. They have put the politicians and unions, let alone the airline, on the spot. Without radical restructuring, Alitalia is going nowhere.