IAG Group’s Spanish airline has announced that as of November it will increase its operations to Bogota (BOG), reaching pre-pandemic levels. In addition, it will resume flights to Santiago de Cali (CLO) starting in December.
The increase in operations between Spain and Colombia is a result of the growth in demand in view of the proximity of the year-end holidays. In addition, Spain allows the entry of citizens fully vaccinated with the vaccines approved by the European Union and the WHO, allowing the majority of immunized Colombian citizens to enter the territory.
On the other hand, Colombia does not have major restrictions for foreigners, allowing free traffic between the old continent and the South American country.
In November, the route to/from Madrid (MAD) / Bogota (BOG) will be increased from seven to ten flights per week. The services will be operated with its Airbus A350-900 with a capacity for 348 passengers, offering 6,920 seats per week.
As of December, it will also recover its direct route between Cali (CLO) and Madrid (MAD), with three weekly flights, operated with Airbus A330-200 aircraft for 288 passengers, offering 1,728 seats per week.
«We celebrate 75 years flying to Latin America and committing to this region, in the good and not so good times. Colombia is a market of tremendous significance for us where we have maintained connectivity throughout the pandemic. We now aim to stimulate traffic to Europe by recovering the same capacity we offered before COVID», said María Jesús López-Solás, Iberia’s Commercial, Network Development, and Alliances Director, at the ALTA FORUM, which was attended by Aviacionline.
«There is a latent demand, which is willing to travel again and we have already demonstrated that health measures can be reconciled with the recovery of the airline industry, which is so vital for the economy of any country», concluded Jesús López-Solás.
Schedule and Frequencies
| Flight | From | Departure | To | Arrival | Frequency |
| IB 6587 | Madrid (MAD) | 16:10 | Bogotá (BOG) | 20:40 | Daily |
| IB 6588 | Bogotá (BOG) | 22:20 | Madrid (MAD) | 14:20 (+1) | Daily |
| IB 6585 | Madrid (MAD) | 12:05 | Bogotá (BOG) | 16:35 | TU-TH-SA |
| IB 6586 | Bogotá (BOG) | 18:15 | Madrid (MAD) | 10:15 (+1) | TU-TH-SA |
| IB 6603 | Madrid (MAD) | 15:55 | Cali (CLO) | 21:05 | TU-TH-SA |
| IB 6604 | Cali (CLO) | 22:35 | Madrid (MAD) | 14:45 | TU-TH-SA |
In addition to direct flights to both destinations, the company offers connections to twelve other destinations within Colombia, in codeshare with its partners in the country. The airline serves Armenia, Barranquilla, Bucaramanga, Cartagena, Cúcuta, Leticia, Medellín, Montería, Pereira, San Andrés, Santa Marta and Yopal.
Colombia is the second-largest market between Latin America and Spain, and the return of capacity to 2019 levels reflects that it will be one of the markets that is better recovering.
