Milan-Malpensa Airport officially bears the name of Silvio Berlusconi

Milan Malpensa International Airport was officially named after former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on Friday, during a ceremony held at Terminal 1. The decision pays tribute to the former head of government and founder of the Forza Italia party, who died on June 12, 2023, at the age of 86.

Those expected to attend the ceremony included Infrastructure and Transport Minister Matteo Salvini, Foreign Minister and Forza Italia leader Antonio Tajani, Senate President Ignazio La Russa, and Paolo Berlusconi, the former prime minister’s brother.

The new name was approved in July 2024 by the Italian Civil Aviation Authority (ENAC), with the approval of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport. Milan City Council and several municipalities near the airport challenged the decision in court, citing a lack of consultation and the fact that, as a rule, a person’s name is assigned to a public place only after a period of ten years from their death.

The Regional Administrative Court of Lombardy rejected the appeals in April, ruling that the airport is infrastructure of national and international importance. For passengers, the change is mainly symbolic: the IATA code MXP remains unchanged on tickets and baggage tags.