Few airways have gone by means of as a lot turmoil as Avianca Airways has since we began this weblog again in 2007 and began writing concerning the trade. They’ve expanded and contracted a number of instances, gotten extra upscale and gone extra downscale too. So we’re going to offer just a little historical past and provides a evaluation of Avianca Airways because it stands now, reasonably than what it was earlier than the pandemic rocked the journey trade.
They nonetheless appear to be caught in an identification disaster as I write this, asking us to spell it as avianca with just a little “a,” maybe due to their diminished standing amongst higher-end vacationers. They are saying it’s a small “a” as a result of the airline is for everyone, which is a elaborate method of claiming they’re a step down from what they was.
It’s reasonably tough to write down about this airline and reference previous expertise as a result of that have has modified a lot. Witness the stat additional down about how they’ve shoved 20% extra seats onto their planes, for starters.
I discussed years again that my Avianca flight to Colombia was one other reminder of simply how far the U.S. airways have fallen compared to a lot of the worldwide carriers.
Within the outdated days, Avianca made me really feel like a passenger once more as an alternative of a quantity on a spreadsheet to be optimized and squeezed. On the way in which right down to Bogota from Ft. Lauderdale, I used to be flying in financial system however nonetheless had a seat-back leisure system, an actual meal, and a glass of wine. The flight attendants smiled as an alternative of simply nagging everybody to show off their Kindle. My knees weren’t jammed into the seat in entrance of me they usually had a beneficiant baggage allowance with no further charges.
Since worldwide and home passengers might examine two baggage with out charges, there was loads of overhead bin house on my first flight and the three that adopted. Naturally the airplane boarded so much sooner for the home ones since there was no financial purpose for bringing a rollaboard bag on the airplane.
We even acquired drink service on a 45-minute flight from Bogota to Pereira. Alas, these days are within the rear-view mirror and determined instances known as for determined measures. Avianca is now a downgraded airline and isn’t on the similar degree as its legacy opponents, though they’ve fallen some too.
A Quick Historical past of Avianca
Avianca is the second oldest airline on the earth nonetheless working after the Dutch provider KLM, and the second largest in Latin America behind LATAM Airways Group. Within the early 2010s, Avianca acquired TACA, which had been round since 1931 and had spent many years shopping for up different Latin American airways that had been in bother. Since in addition they ran home flights in Peru, that gave Avianca an entry there as nicely.
In 2012, Avianca and TACA joined Star Alliance, in some ways the very best worldwide alliance for frequent fliers. (Their associate within the USA is United.)
Avianca and has 4 major connection hubs in El Salvador, Costa Rica, Bogota, and Lima, and fly to all of Central America and South America.
North American gateways (direct or in codeshares with companions) embody San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Washington-Dulles, JFK, Chicago-O’Hare, Toronto, and Mexico Metropolis.
Avianca’s Chapter and Restoration
Restricted legroom in financial system class now
In Could 2020, Avianca filed for Chapter 11 chapter safety amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The monetary loss suffered pressured the corporate to file because of 88% of the nations it operated in being beneath journey restrictions or full journey shutdown. Different airways had been in the identical scenario, however the U.S. ones acquired bailout cash and among the others weren’t so stretched with debt and will maintain on longer.
Naturally, passenger statistics went down tremendously. Airways everywhere in the world plummeted in passenger stats and journeys as a result of pandemic, and Avianca was not the one airline to file for chapter, alongside neighbors reminiscent of Aeromexico (nonetheless round) and Interjet (now historical past).
Avianca shut down its Peruvian subsidiary on account of the chapter. Anko van der Werff, the CEO on the time stated “Avianca is going through essentially the most difficult disaster in our 100-year historical past as we navigate the results of the Covid-19 pandemic. We consider {that a} reorganization beneath Chapter 11 is the very best path ahead to guard the important air journey and air transport providers that we offer throughout Colombia and different markets all through Latin America.”
Avianca moved its focus to lower- and middle-class passengers on account of this, pivoting from wealthier clients, following the Chapter 11 emergence to prioritize affordability. The corporate retired the A330, ATR 42, and ATR 72 vessels. Now it’s simply the Airbus A320 and the Boeing 787 in operation. Avianca moved to cheaper cabins, with smaller and extra environment friendly seats, and much more rows had been added, leading to a 20% capability improve, permitting them to decrease fares.
In 2023, over a century after its founding, Avianca went by means of a picture rebrand. As talked about earlier, they modified the capital letter “A” in Avianca to a lowercase one, with the assertion “the sky belongs to everybody.” Since all of those modifications, the corporate has added routes, passenger site visitors is on the upswing, and the airline general retains increasing, bouncing again from the rock-bottom spot they discovered themselves in in the course of the pandemic.
They’ve clearly turned the operations round too in much less seen areas: in 2023 they had been named essentially the most punctual international airline, at 85.73%. This stat places them 10% greater than their pre-pandemic spot in 2019, and a couple of% above 2022.
Avianca now operates in roughly 25 nations all through Europe and the Americas, with 75 locations throughout 140 routes.
Enterprise Class on Avianca: An Try to Rebound
There’s no good strategy to put this: enterprise class on Avianca grew to become a whole joke for a number of years there. Throughout the COVID-19 days, they had been handing enterprise class passengers stale sandwiches wrapped in plastic and on some flights there was a single alcohol alternative. Apparently that was all that was left in storage they usually couldn’t restock, so your selections had been Baily’s Irish Creme, espresso, or water. In enterprise class!
Phrase unfold shortly and those that might afford enterprise class shortly jumped to a different provider so they might obtain higher remedy. The airline has a troublesome job in entrance of them attempting to persuade enterprise vacationers and rich leisure vacationers that this downgraded airline can nonetheless deal with the premium passengers within the entrance of the airplane.
Earlier this yr, the corporate upgraded the Boeing 787s and A320 aircrafts, reworking the manager cabins into what they’re calling Avianca Insignia cabins. Enterprise class now contains absolutely reclining seats, drinks (each alcoholic and never), in addition to full meals and all-you-can-eat snacks. Amenity kits in instances made out of recycled material and designed in collaboration with the Gunadule indigenous neighborhood and Mola Sasa are supplied as nicely, together with blankets and pillows. Right here’s what the seats seem like now, based on what’s on their web site:
New enterprise class options may also be accessible on single-aisle planes beginning this summer season, on over 10 completely different routes throughout North America. Meals, snacks, drinks, and amenity kits are supplied just like the Insignia cabins on the double-seat aircrafts.
Avianca Baggage Insurance policies
This airline has adopted a lot of the others to the underside in relation to baggage insurance policies, providing a dreaded “primary financial system” possibility that doesn’t embody something, however going as much as two checked baggage and a carry-on for those who fly enterprise class.
The 2 fares in between do embody one checked bag and a carry-on, so you’ll be able to pack what you want when headed to South America. In any other case, you’ll must cough up $40 for the primary checked bag and also you’d higher do it upfront: they’ll cost you an unimaginable $120 for those who wait till you’re on the airport!
Right here’s the rundown on the fare choices for many flights, although brief ones typically begin with “mild” and do embody a 10-kilo carry-on.
Avianca Lounges
Like most established airways, some airports host VIP Avianca lounges for his or her passengers. Home lounges reside in Bogota, Medellin, Cali, Bucaramanga, Cartagena, and Barranquilla, and worldwide ones in Bogota and El Salvador. The airport places in South America are as follows:
- El Dorado Worldwide Airport (Bogota)
- San Oscar A. Romero Worldwide Airport (El Salvador)
- José María Cordova Airport (Medellin)
- Alfonso Bonilla Aragon Worldwide Airport (Cali)
- Palonegro Worldwide Airport (Bucaramanga)
- Rafael Nuñez Worldwide Airport (Cartagena)
- Ernesto Cortissoz Worldwide Airport (Barranquilla)
Avianca additionally has a lounge within the Miami airport and it’s one of many bigger ones there, at round 6,000 sq. toes. Most of those lounges can be found by means of the Precedence Cross program or, you probably have excessive sufficient standing with a Star Alliance associate, which will get you in as nicely. In any other case, you might want to fly enterprise class or pay a payment to enter, which is what I did final time I had a layover in Bogota.
These lounges assist you to calm down earlier than flights and on layovers, entry Wi-Fi and charging stations, and partake in meals and drinks. Passes go for roughly 30$ per particular person for those who don’t have standing or Precedence Cross and will be bought and booked on-line.
The lounge in Bogota we paid to enter
Go to Avianca.com for more information and flight offers. I’m unsure why, however this airline isn’t listed on SeatGuru. So that you’ll must go to the Avianca part of Seatmaps.com for seat pitch and plan configurations.
It’s at all times value checking costs on the Avianca web site first, then evaluating them to what you discover on Kayak and elsewhere. In concept the very best fares must be provided direct, however that’s not at all times the case. Additionally, for those who search by means of an OTA, you’ll see what different airways could also be providing a greater deal (and extra consolation) on the identical route.
Something we’ve missed on this evaluation of Avianca Airways? In case you flew them just lately, tell us the way it went!
Article and unique images by editor Timothy Scott, display screen shot images from Avianca.com. Extra analysis by contributor Alina Leffel.