After the monthly update of the United States and Canada for November, we move on to Latin America to review the most important events of the last few weeks in this market. To read the previous edition, click here:

• United States and Canada – November 2023.

One of the many highlights of this market was the re-incorporation of a Tupolev into Cubana’s fleet. The aircraft returned to Havana after a period of almost four years in Russia.

Cuba’s state-owned carrier now has three active aircraft in its fleet. Several Antonov An-158 and Ilyushin Il-96-300 are inactive at Havana’s Jose Marti Airport, and it is unknown whether these aircraft will fly again in the future.

Aerolíneas Argentinas

For the summer season, Aerolíneas Argentinas will add two new routes between Argentina and Uruguay as of January 2024. Both will be available until early March, and will be operated from Montevideo.

Bariloche · effective January 2nd (Boeing 737-800s)

Tuesday and Friday

• AR 1395  Montevideo MVD 12:25 · 15:10 BRC Bariloche

Tuesday and Sunday

• AR 1394  Bariloche BRC 18:05 · 20:25 MVD Montevideo

Mar del Plata · effective January 3rd (Embraer 190s)

Wednesday

• AR 1393  Montevideo MVD 11:00 · 12:00 MDQ Mar del Plata

• AR 1392  Mar del Plata MDQ 17:40 · 18:35 MVD Montevideo

Saturday

• AR 1393  Montevideo MVD 10:20 · 11:20 MDQ Mar del Plata

Sunday

• AR 1392  Mar del Plata MDQ 17:10 · 18:05 MVD Montevideo

Mar del Plata is a city on the Argentine coast located 400 kilometers from Buenos Aires. Currently, in addition to the country’s capital, the airport has flights to Bariloche, Bahía Blanca, Comodoro Rivadavia, Córdoba, Mendoza, Trelew and Tucumán.

Meanwhile, Bariloche is in the Argentine Patagonia, near Puerto Montt, in Chile. Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires, Córdoba, El Calafate, Mar del Plata, Mendoza and Rosario are its destinations.

In contrast to Mar del Plata, Bariloche usually has international services during the high season.

Arajet

During late October and early November, Arajet inaugurated three new routes from its main hub at Las Americas Airport in Santo Domingo.

Santiago, Toronto and Montreal were the airline’s new acquisitions in the last month. Sao Paulo started in September, where it operates three times a week, and on November 14th Arajet will launch flights to Buenos Aires.

• Buenos Aires (EZE): 3 weekly
• Montreal (YUL): 4 weekly · November 7th
• Santiago (SCL): 3 weekly · October 29th
• Sao Paulo (GRU): 3 weekly
• Toronto (YYZ): 4 weekly · October 24th

Arajet recently added its sixth Boeing 737 MAX 8, HI1104:

• HI1026 · 1 year
• HI1027 · 1 year
• HI1078 · 4 years
• HI1081 · 4 years
• HI1082 · 4 years
• HI1104 · 5 years

Shortly, the company will incorporate the seventh MAX, with registration HI1099.

Avelo

As announced in the U.S./Canada edition, Avelo will begin service to Puerto Rico from New Haven on November 15th. Later that day, the carrier will inaugurate flights between Wilmington (ILG) and San Juan.

Avelo Airlines will operate with 189-seat Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

Wednesday

• XP 587  Wilmington ILG 13:10 · 18:00 SJU San Juan
• XP 588  San Juan SJU 19:00 · 22:00 ILG Wilmington

Saturday

• XP 587  Wilmington ILG 13:20 · 18:10 SJU San Juan
• XP 588  San Juan SJU 19:10 · 22:10 ILG Wilmington

avianca

The airline inaugurated its flights between Quito and Orlando last October 29th. Avianca Ecuador will operate twice a week with 180-seat Airbus A320 jets.

Quito is the company’s second destination in Orlando.

Wednesday and Sunday

• AV 7398  Quito UIO 07:35 · 12:05 MCO Orlando
• AV 7399  Orlando MCO 13:30 · 18:00 UIO Quito

Avianca operates two daily services to Orlando from El Dorado Airport (Bogotá).

Boliviana de Aviación

As part of its international development from Bolivia, the carrier began flights to Cuba and Venezuela at the end of October. In both cases, services will be carried out once a week with Boeing 737-800 aircraft seating 168 passengers in single class.

Caracas

Tuesday

• OB 1718  Santa Cruz VVI 20:10 · 00:30+1 CCS Caracas

Wednesday

• OB 1711  Caracas CCS 02:00 · 06:20 VVI Santa Cruz

Havana

Thursday

• OB 1756  Santa Cruz VVI 18:30 · 23:59 HAV Havana

Friday

• OB 1751  Havana HAV 02:00 · 08:30 VVI Santa Cruz

Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, Peru, Spain and the United States are Boliviana de Aviación’s international markets:

Cochabamba

• Buenos Aires (EZE)
• Madrid (only MAD-CBB)
• Sao Paulo (GRU)

Santa Cruz de la Sierra

• Buenos Aires (EZE)
• Caracas (CCS)
• Havana (HAV)
• Lima (LIM)
• Madrid (MAD)
• Miami (MIA)
• Sao Paulo (GRU)

Canada Jetlines

Canada Jetlines will commence flights between Toronto and Montego Bay on December 9th. The airline will have two weekly services during December, and 3 from January for the high season.

The last flight is scheduled for May 31st, 2024, according to the carrier’s website.

Saturday and Sunday

• AU 636  Toronto YYZ 13:30 · 17:25 MBJ Montego Bay
• AU 637  Montego Bay MBJ 18:30 · 22:30 YYZ Toronto

Starting in January, a flight will be added on Fridays, with the same schedule.

Air Canada, Air Transat, Sunwing Airlines and WestJet currently operate between the two cities.

Cayman Airways

The Cayman Islands carrier confirmed the start of seasonal flights between Grand Cayman and Denver beginning December 16th. At the time of publication, operations, which are for sale, will run through August 11th, 2024.

Saturday

• KX 440  Grand Cayman GCM 08:30 · 11:20 DEN Denver
• KX 441  Denver DEN 12:40 · 19:10 GCM Grand Cayman

Cayman Airways will be the only operator on this route.

Copa Airlines

The airline will boost flights between Panama City and Rio de Janeiro effective January 4th, 2024. Copa currently offers 14 services per week on this route with Boeing 737-800s and Boeing 737 MAX 9s.

Daily

• CM 873  Panama City PTY 15:14 · 00:20+1 GIG Rio de Janeiro
• CM 872  Rio de Janeiro GIG 01:20 · 06:51 PTY Panama City

Daily

• CM 216  Panama City PTY 22:02 · 07:09+1 GIG Rio de Janeiro
• CM 215  Rio de Janeiro GIG 10:58 · 16:34 PTY Panama City

New flight

Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday

• CM 486  Panama City PTY 19:00 · 04:06+1 GIG Rio de Janeiro

Monday, Wednesday and Friday

• CM 487  Rio de Janeiro GIG 05:13 · 10:44 PTY Panama City

Belo Horizonte, Brasilia, Manaus, Porto Alegre, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo are Copa’s destinations in Brazil.

Cubana de Aviación

After remaining in Russia for about four years, Cubana de Aviación re-incorporated the Tupolev Tu-204-100E, registration CU-T1702. In mid-2019, the aircraft was bound for Ulyanovsk, Russia, due to maintenance.

Last September 17th, the Tupolev departed from Ulyanovsk to Havana on a ferry flight (without passengers on board) making stopovers in Reykjavik, Iceland and Gander, Canada.

The jet was grounded until November 1st, when it began test flights within Cuba prior, tentatively, to its entry into regular service.

Cubana’s fleet consists of one ATR 42 and another ATR 72. International routes are performed by aircraft leased from Plus Ultra, with Buenos Aires and Madrid as destinations. Furthermore, services between Cuba and Russia are usually operated by Conviasa, while flights to Venezuela are carried out by Estelar.

To see the latest operations of the aircraft, click here.

Estelar

The Venezuelan carrier will resume services between Caracas and Madrid as of November 17th. Estelar had made its last regular flight to Europe in March 2020, due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Services will be carried out by Iberojet’s Airbus A350-900, once a week.

Friday

• ES 894  Madrid MAD 12:30 · 16:15 CCS Caracas
• ES 895  Caracas CCS 19:15 · 08:50+1 MAD Madrid

Estelar will be the fourth operator on the Madrid – Caracas route. The other airlines have the following schedule:

Air Europa

Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday

• UX 71  Madrid MAD 16:40 · 21:00 CCS Caracas
• UX 72  Caracas CCS 23:00 · 12:35+1 MAD Madrid

Iberia

Daily except Thursday and Saturday

• IB 6673  Madrid MAD 11:55 · 16:20 CCS Caracas
• IB 6674  Caracas CCS 18:15 · 07:55+1 MAD Madrid

Plus Ultra

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday

• PU 701  Madrid MAD 13:00 · 17:30 CCS Caracas

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday

• PU 702  Caracas CCS 20:00 · 10:00+1 MAD Madrid

GOL Linhas Aéreas

Following a four-year suspension, GOL Linhas Aéreas will restart flights between Brasilia and Buenos Aires effective January 2nd, 2024. Operations were stopped in March 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the moment, GOL will have services between the two capitals until mid-February 2024, for the summer season.

Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday

• G3 9529  Buenos Aires EZE 03:55 · 07:50 BSB Brasilia

Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday

• G3 9528  Brasilia BSB 09:00 · 12:35 EZE Buenos Aires

In Brasilia, passengers will be able to connect with GOL’s domestic network, as well as international operations, which are Miami and Orlando.

JetSMART

The low cost inaugurated flights between Lima and Medellín, its first route in the Peru-Colombia market, on November 8th. JetSMART will have three weekly services with Airbus A320neo aircraft.

Monday

• JA 7750  Lima LIM 06:20 · 09:32 MDE Medellin
• JA 7751  Medellin MDE 10:33 · 13:45 LIM Lima

Wednesday and Saturday

• JA 7750  Lima LIM 07:05 · 10:17 MDE Medellin
• JA 7751  Medellin MDE 11:18 · 14:30 LIM Lima

Starting in December, the airline will begin operations to Cartagena and Cúcuta, both from Lima.

LATAM

The company began flights between Lima and Atlanta on October 29th, as part of the Joint Venture with Delta Air Lines. LATAM will have, until March 2024, three weekly services with 221-seat Boeing 767-300(ER)s.

Atlanta is the airline’s fourth U.S. destination from Lima (Los Angeles, Miami and New York).

Wednesday, Friday and Sunday

• LA 2482  Lima LIM 12:20 · 19:30 ATL Atlanta
• LA 2483  Atlanta ATL 22:10 · 05:05+1 LIM Lima

Effective April 2024, LATAM schedules one daily frequency on this route.

Delta currently has one flight per day between Atlanta and Lima on Airbus A350-900 jets as follows: 

Daily

• DL 151  Atlanta ATL 14:30 · 20:55 LIM Lima
• DL 150  Lima LIM 23:55 · 06:35+1 ATL Atlanta

Mexicana de Aviación

The iconic Mexicana de Aviación, which ceased operations in 2010 due to a severe economic crisis, seems to be returning in the short term. Mexican President Lopez Obrador had announced its comeback during a press conference last July, focusing mainly on the domestic market.

Recently, an image of the first plane of the “new Mexicana de Aviación” became known through social media. In contrast to what was announced, the airline plans to start its services with an Embraer 145, which belongs to TAR, another Mexican carrier. Initially, the incorporation of 10 Boeing 737-800s had been reported, which were scheduled to arrive between September and November, but this did not happen.

The Embraer is undergoing the painting process.

As can be seen on their website, these will be the destinations, all to and from Mexico City’s new airport, known as AIFA / Felipe Angeles.

We will follow the evolution of the “new” Mexicana de Aviación.

Paranair

Beginning in December, the Paraguayan airline will start its seasonal flights to Brazil and Uruguay for the summer season.

As in the last years, Florianópolis, Rio de Janeiro and Punta del Este will be the seasonal routes, with the following schedule:

Florianópolis · effective December 28th

Friday, Saturday and Sunday

• ZP 896  Asunción ASU 06:30 · 08:10 FLN Florianópolis
• ZP 897  Florianópolis FLN 09:05 · 10:45 ASU Asunción

In December, it will operate on the 28th, 29th and 30th.

Punta del Este · effective December 25th

Monday, Friday and Sunday

• ZP 892  Asunción ASU 18:00 · 19:50 PDP Punta del Este
• ZP 893  Punta del Este PDP 20:35 · 22:25 ASU Asunción

In December, it will operate from the 25th to the 30th.

Río de Janeiro · effective December 26th

Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday

• ZP 830  Asunción ASU · 08:40 GIG Río de Janeiro
• ZP 831  Río de Janeiro GIG 09:50 · 12:30 ASU Asunción

In December, it will operate on the 26th and 27th.

Buenos Aires, Ciudad del Este, Montevideo and Santa Cruz de la Sierra are part of Paranair’s current schedule from the Paraguayan capital.

VivaAerobus

The Mexican carrier will launch flights to Denver on January 25th, 2024. Operations will be carried out from Monterrey with Airbus A321s of 240 seats, twice a week.

Thursday and Sunday

• VB 720  Monterrey MTY 10:10 · 12:10 DEN Denver
• VB 721  Denver DEN 13:40 · 17:20 MTY Monterrey

Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York and San Antonio are Viva’s destinations in the United States:

Chicago

• Guadalajara (GDL): 12 weekly · Airbus A320
• Guanajuato (BJX): 3 weekly · Airbus A320
• Mexico City (MEX): 7 weekly · Airbus A320
• Monterrey (MTY): 3 weekly · Airbus A321
• Morelia (MLM): 3 weekly · Airbus A320

Cincinnati

• Cancún (CUN): 1 weekly · Airbus A320

Dallas

• Monterrey (MTY): 7 weekly · Airbus A320 and Airbus A321

Houston

• Guadalajara (GDL): 4 weekly · Airbus A320
• Guanajuato (BJX): 4 weekly · Airbus A320
• Mexico City (MEX): 6 weekly · Airbus A320
• Monterrey (MTY): 17 weekly · Airbus A320 and Airbus A321

Las Vegas

• Mexico City (MEX): 7 weekly · Airbus A320
• Monterrey (MTY): 5 weekly · Airbus A321

Los Angeles

• Guadalajara (GDL): 16 weekly · Airbus A320
• Mexico City (MEX): 7 weekly · Airbus A320 and Airbus A321
• Monterrey (MTY): 2 weekly · Airbus A320 and Airbus A321

New York

• Mexico City (MEX): 7 weekly · Airbus A320

San Antonio

• Guanajuato (BJX): 2 weekly · Airbus A320
• Mexico City (MEX): 6 weekly · Airbus A320
• Monterrey (MTY): 14 weekly · Airbus A320 and Airbus A321

Cover photo: Sergio Luis Luna Navarro – JetPhotos.