During a media briefing, Adrian Neuhauser, CEO of Avianca, commented that the airline expects to increase to more than 200 routes by 2023 and thus guarantee the company’s viability.
In this regard, Avianca plans a redesign of its business model in which it seeks to gradually reduce ticket prices, however, the Executive stated that the airline will not operate as a Low-Cost, though it will have some aspects of this model such as operational efficiency and competitive fares.
This commitment is supported by the fleet densification project in which the airline is in the process of redesigning the cabins of its A320 aircraft to increase the capacity of each aircraft by 20%.
The new configuration of seats includes three classes; Economy, Plus, and Premium, which will diversify ticket costs.
Accordingly, Manuel Ambriz, CEO Commercial Officer of the airline, explained the characteristics of the new classes and affirmed that this process aims to have a positive impact on fares. «Increasing the capacity of each aircraft by 20% will allow us to reduce ticket costs by optimizing flights,» he added.
By 2024, Avianca expects to increase its fleet to more than 120 aircraft in order to support the proposed robust operation. It is worth noting that this plan includes the simplification of the fleet to only two types of aircraft; Boeing 787 Dreamliner and Airbus A320.
With this plan, the airline expects to consolidate the viability of the business after exiting Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Law and ensure its continuity.
Avianca Indicators
| Daily flights | More than 448 |
| Daily customers | More than 58.000 |
| OTP | 90% |
| OD | 79% |
| MB | 1,34 |
In addition, Neuhauser strongly objected to the operational problems at Bogota’s El Dorado Airport, which affect up to 80 flights per day.
A combination of the operation with private and military flights, the limited space for aircraft, and delays in migration processes, cause delays that can affect more than 12,000 airline travelers per day.
The Executive called for a solution to these «operational inefficiencies», which in the last year have affected more than 4,000 flights and some 500,000 passengers.
