Venezuelan Estelar mulls resuming flights to Spain with a wet-leased Airbus A350
Estelar plans to resume its transatlantic operations after more than 3 and a half years through the Wet-Leasing of an aircraft for the 2023-2024 winter season, according to ch-aviation.com.
The airline plans to fly between Maiquetia Airport and Madrid starting November 17, but tickets are not currently on sale. Estelar’s last European services ceased in March 2020 as a consequence of the pandemic.
The company once had non-stop flights to Madrid, Lisbon and Rome-Fiumicino operated on Hi Fly’s Airbus A340-300 aircraft, at one time some services were temporarily operated on Airbus A380s. Estelar has chosen Iberojet to sign an ACMI contract and use its Airbus A350-900 aircraft with a capacity of 432 passengers.
Iberojet owns two Airbus A350-900s leased by ALC and Avolon. The Spanish leisure airline is dedicating the use of these aircraft to ACMI contracts, due to its reduced scheduling in the low season for charter and leisure travel between October and March.
Recovery of the Spain – Venezuela market
Spain is one of Venezuela’s most important markets due to its historical relationship and has a strong demand for VFR passengers (friends and/or family visiting). Throughout 2023, this segment has steadily recovered, surpassing pre-pandemic levels.
According to data obtained by Aviacionline through Aena Estadísticas, 149,876 passengers and 1,077 tons of cargo were mobilized in the period January – July 2023 between Madrid and Caracas. Passenger and cargo traffic increased by 169% and 72% respectively compared to 2022 levels.
From October, between Spain and Venezuela there will be a supply of more than 35,000 seats per month according to Cirium. Airlines operating between Caracas and Madrid include Air Europa with three flights a week on Boeing 787s, Iberia with five flights a week on Airbus A330s and Plus Ultra with four flights a week on Airbus A330s.
In addition, Plus Ultra offers a non-stop service between Tenerife-Norte and Maiquetia Airport with a weekly frequency in Airbus A330. This service meets the demand of Venezuelan citizens residing in the Canary Islands.
Corresponsal en Venezuela de Aviacionline. Editor. Estudiante de Ingeniería.
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