The Commission has approved the Italian scheme which allocates 130 million euros to airlines to compensate for the damage suffered as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Once the green light will be given by the Commission, the Italian Government will be able to provide support in the form of direct subsidies to airlines for losses caused directly by the COVID-19 pandemic and the travel restrictions that Italy and other countries had to apply to limit the spread of the coronavirus between 1 March 2020 and 15 June 2020. The scheme provides for a recovery mechanism whereby any public support exceeding the damage actually suffered by the beneficiaries will have to be repaid to the Italian State. The risk of State aid exceeding the damage is therefore excluded. The European Commission has noted that the Italian measure is proportionate, as the planned support does not go beyond what is necessary to compensate for losses and will compensate for damage directly related to the coronavirus pandemic. On this basis, the Commission approved the measures in accordance with the Union rules on State aid.