Lufthansa plans to nearly double the number of weekly fights out of Milan's Malpensa Airport in an agreement that could help the northern Italian airport recover from cutbacks by Alitalia.

Lufthansa said on Monday it would station six new Embraer 195 regional jets at the airport at the beginning of next year, offering flights to new European destinations.

The flights will be operated by its subsidiary Air Dolomiti.

"Milan and the Lombardy region are among the strongest and most important regions in Europe and have a high passenger volume," Lufthansa said in a statement.

The number of Lufthansa flights out of Malpensa would rise to more than 300, it said.

Lufthansa also flies out of Linate, near Milan.

Malpensa airport operator SEA is looking for airlines to fill the gap being left by loss-making Alitalia, which decided to abandon Malpensa as a second hub and cut back 70 percent of its flights to cut costs and avoid bankruptcy.

The move, begun in March, provoked an outcry from regional politicians fearing job losses, and from business leaders fearing a loss of direct intercontinental flights.

It has also seen SEA file a lawsuit against Alitalia for EUR1.25 billion euros (USD$1.88 billion) in damages.

Air France-KLM had supported Alitalia's cutbacks until it dropped its offer to buy the Italian airline in the face of union opposition.

Sunday newspapers said a number of regional business leaders such as the chairman of Pirelli could be interested in taking part in an alternative bid for Alitalia, which is looking for a partner since Air France-KLM's withdrawal.

Air One, a small, domestic rival to Alitalia which has also expressed interest in such a bid, is increasing the number of flights out of Malpensa with the aim of eventually becoming the airport's main airline.